


Project S3: The Crises in Three Worlds

by AnneLaurant



Series: Anne's S3verse [1]
Category: W.I.T.C.H.
Genre: Action, Adventure, Bad Humor, Canon Compliant, Canon Continuation, Child Abuse, Comedy, Drama, F/F, F/M, Fantasy, Fix-it fic, Gen, M/M, Plot Slow Burn, Romance, Season 3, Self-Harm, Slow Burn, genre salad
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2019-08-09
Packaged: 2019-10-01 07:51:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 78,319
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17240366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnneLaurant/pseuds/AnneLaurant
Summary: Everyone has problems. The difference is that some problems seem graver than yours. Everyone has pains and sorrows. The difference is that some are shallower than yours. The living world is a land filled with suffering. Knowing this, is it still worth it to push forward?Or, in which Will finds sudden, immediate changes in her life as a guardian and as a normal teenager, the new mission is way tougher than it sounds like, and, the universe is not making it easy for anybody to solve any problems no matter how little.Note: Tags will be updated to reflect new content and/or to warn for squicky or triggering content.





	1. New Year, New Problems

**Author's Note:**

> Skip this section if you don't want to read my rant.
> 
> Alright. I wrote this for many selfish reasons, so I'd understand if nobody likes it.
> 
>  **First:** I didn't write this story with little kids as my audience in mind, so some elements (no pun intended) may come as a surprise (or a turn-off) to you.
> 
>  **Second:** I wanted a better adaptation of the Arkhanta story (and consequently, the Interpol story). It may come off as a simple problem with a very simple solution, but that isn't so. Life isn't that simple.
> 
>  **Third:** I kind of went overboard in my desire for subplots and character development, and I didn’t want any of the plots to stay as ideas forever.
> 
> I actually kind of hate this story, but I wrote it for the sake of one single subplot that I didn’t plan on writing, but ended up heavily influencing me on writing this. Hint: it’s not about Orube, surprisingly.
> 
>  
> 
> **Opening Song:**
> 
>  
> 
> How had I arrived to this scenery?  
> How had we survived all this misery?  
> How could I forget I had a heavy price to pay?
> 
> Hold my hand and please tell me I am wrong  
> That I can fix this no matter how long
> 
> How can you find the power to head towards the bright light?  
> How can you take so much pain and keep walking further?  
> But despite it all, I'd still like to fight
> 
> When the world has gone astray  
>  _Let the heart lead the way_

The sun cast its first rays upon peeking from the horizon. It was still quite dark; the bluish grey clouds of the night still loomed over the plains. A few early birds could be heard chirping in the distance. Nature was only waking up, but the people of Arkhanta were already ahead of it.

Farmers set to work in their fields, taking weeds out and making sure that their crops were properly hydrated. Fishermen carefully boarded their boats and set off for the best spots for the greatest catch. Traders counted their goods, estimated their profits, and opened their stores. Children were shaken awake, all tasked with chores to help their parents. Tunes were whistled to battle boredom and fatigue. Everyone had to have finished major tasks before the heat reached its peak.

This was an everyday scene in Arkhanta. Arkhanta was a very simple world; its people were very simple too. To deviate from such routines meant that something was going on in the land.

However, nothing truly lasts forever.

People would shrug it off if the oddity only lasted for a day or two, or maybe a week, a month. However, once the children would point it out, they could no longer cast a blind eye towards it.

The air felt quite different – hot, short, sharp. It was the middle of summer, right, but the summer of Arkhanta was never this harsh. There were fewer birds singing; fewer animals obeying their exasperated caretakers’ requests. The land seemed different, too. The crops weren’t growing well; harvest would be bad. The soil seemed very dry, too, and overwatering would immediately drown it, as well as the plants. The water was different as well, and the taste was quite different. The wells got deeper and deeper; the shores got bigger and bigger. Rivers began to stop short, and even the taste of the water made people question its quality.

If such oddities happened, say, on several successive days, or in one or two towns, there wouldn’t be a problem. Things would simply be shrugged off as bad luck, a temporary loss. They didn’t have to worry again, they were promised. The land had been so beautiful and bountiful all these past years.

However, these things had been happening for months.

At first, things were shrugged off as being a bad start in the year. Some people could’ve simply been overthinking; maybe it was just them. But, they weren’t, not when all the stories in the taverns of Urdath were similar. The sudden fluctuations in weather. The intense summer. A plague. The land was being plagued. Even children understood that there had been something different this year.

‘I hope my flower is all right,’ thought little Padja as she ran to look after her beloved flower. Her mother, who’d usually make a fuss about skipping chores, merely looked on.

“If this keeps up,” the woman said to a neighbor, “Arkhanta would plunge into deep sorrow, wouldn’t it?”

Her neighbor nodded. “However, none will have deeper sorrow than our King Ari, right?”

“Right…”

A few miles away, a man looked out of a tower with white pillars. His hair was short and dark, with a small braid on one side and a tuff of light hair on the other – a sign of his aging. The wrinkles on his face deepened, as he watched how people gather like ants in their respective villages. These villagers were assumedly discussing of the impending disaster.

Argh. What had he not done? He'd tried to do all he could within the limits of his power. It was so useless to have power when he couldn’t do anything, anything at all. Not for fellow farmers, not for himself, and not for his son.

His son. His precious, precious son. The one precious treasure he had.

Not his power, not this citadel, not his riches. His son. His son was the one thing he’d protect above them all, and yet, the man couldn’t do anything for his precious, precious son.

How weak! How could he live on knowing that he couldn’t do anything for his son?! How could he live on knowing that he couldn’t do anything for himself or for his friends down there in the plains?! No science, no magic could help them at all. Nothing! No god and no powerful fae could help them at all! Why?! Why had they been abandoned?! The man – this man called Ari – he chuckled, forcing his lips into a bitter smile, clenching his fists and gritting his teeth. Useless! Everything was useless! If only… if only… _if only…!_

-=-

The sun blazed in its rule over the sky; dust rolled in the dry air. Red boulders and rock formations decorated the plains, cracked from the desert climate. The landscape bathed in reds, oranges, and golds. It was doubtful if life could truly be sustained in Aridia’s surface.

But, there were exemptions to the rule, for Aridia had a source of magic, however tiny this fragment was. It was a power that rose to the time of need, to find rich oases and lush underground caves, flourished by miraculous water sources. However, the current keeper of this power, the Heart of Aridia, knew little of his abilities. He saw little need to know more of it, and he didn’t bother to. Life on Aridia was quite simple and very humbling. Even the Heart was such a simple creature too – a stone golem with no need for nourishment, only companionship.

This was very much the reason that the Guardians of the Infinite Worlds and two of their friends from Meridian were here in Aridia. The vessel of this world’s magic, poor soul, had his emotional heart broken, and his loneliness affected the magic that kept the desert planet together. Canyons opened and reached down deep abysses. The water would be swallowed by drought or flooding the hard, cracked soil. The animals grew restless or very tired; the plants either had humongous overgrowths or stopped growing altogether.

Aridia would surely be in ruins in no time if the matter would not be addressed immediately.

“How hard is it to track a pile of _rocks_?!” Caleb complained, wiping his brow with a hiss.

“Blunk confused!” explained the small passling, “Everywhere is rocks! But let Brunk try. Let Blunk try! But… maybe after rest?”

“Thanks, Blunk.” Will tried to smile. “I guess… that’s all we could do for now.”

“We really could use the break.” Hay Lin gave a wide grin, but she looked exhausted herself.

“Yeah!” Cornelia agreed, “This weather is ruining my hair!”

“And when we go back to Heatherfield, it’s going to be freezing! We’ll get sick!” Taranee added.

“And we still have to deal with our growing pile of homework, Will!” Irma grumbled, “Why are we dealing with such a small problem? Can’t Bigwig Oracle not send us?”

Caleb frowned. “I don’t like this mission either, but compared to dealing with Phobos and Nerissa, I can’t really complain!”

Will sighed. “Yeah. Me too. Let’s go to that nearby oasis for a break.”

Thankfully, the oasis was intact and void of the horrors that wrecked the rest of the land. How odd. Will and Taranee, though very tired, would like to question it first, but the others were enjoying themselves with the temporary paradise they found. Irma and Hay Lin splashed each other with waves; Cornelia washed her face; Caleb drank his fill; Blunk simply appreciated the shade that the palm-like trees provided.

“We better be alert,” Taranee suggested to Will in a whisper.

The Keeper of the Heart nodded. “Better safe than sorry.”

The minutes passed by, with little to worry about. Still, the two wary guardians hadn’t gotten rest, their minds still on the lookout for anything wrong.

Irma noticed Will’s tense stance, so the Guardian of Water called upon her element and splashed it against her friend’s face. Will yelped, which alerted Taranee.

“Will! Danger! Get away!” the Guardian of Fire screamed. Her exclamation was met with a few seconds of silence and confusion, then a burst of laughter.

“Relax!” Irma assured, “We barely get a vacation from anything. This isn’t the time to get paranoid over stuff.”

“Irma’s right,” Caleb agreed, “You should get as much rest as you can.”

Will and Taranee looked at each other. Well, what’s the harm? They shrugged and smiled, then joined the others in their mini beach summer getaway.

After a while of playing and relaxing, Will invited all her friends to continue their task. It shouldn’t be too difficult to befriend the Heart of Aridia, lift his spirits, and stop his magic from destroying his home.

The guardians, Caleb, and Blunk resumed their search. It didn’t take Hay Lin too long to pick up the stone golem’s wails, or for the whole group to reach the top of the rocky plateau where he settled. The girls flew straight ahead, while Caleb quickly climbed up, much to Cornelia’s fancy. She made a mental note to congratulate him on his abilities later. For now, they would deal with the poor, sad creature.

“She broke my heart!” cried the golem, “I don’t trust girls!”

Caleb made the first attempt to calm him down. “Hey, buddy! I’m really sorry for your loss. But, if you keep um, not trusting girls, then how will you make more friends? How will you heal your heart?”

Thankfully, the golem’s wails were reduced to quiet sobbing. “Friends?” he croaked out.

“Yes. Friends. Not as close as a girlfriend is, but they’re also very awesome.”

The guardians took that as an okay to share their own thoughts.

“And, Mister!” Hay Lin said, “If you’re willing to trust us, we can be your friend!”

“That’s right!” Will smiled. “If you keep being sad, then this whole world will be sad, too. Then, your friends can’t visit you and talk with you.”

“You can’t climb out of a deep pit if you don’t stand up and fight!” Irma cheered.

“And, when you’re on your own feet,” Cornelia suggested, “Work to be a better person. Rock. Golem. Err… right. Work to be better! Then, when you see that girl again, you can prove to her that, she made the wrong choice to leave you!”

Caleb didn’t exactly like the implications of his girlfriend’s words (or the smug grin that she wore while looking at him), but since he had to be an example to the Heart of Aridia, he had to smile. “Right! So, don’t be sad anymore, okay, buddy?”

“Blunk need golem happy,” Blunk agreed, “Golem happy, world happy, friends happy!”

The golem stopped crying. He asked, “Really? You will be my friends?”

Taranee nodded. “Of course! We’re kind of busy, but we’ll visit you when we can. Oh, and if you meet a good girl, you can introduce her to us, so, all of us can be friends!”

The golem seemed happy with the answers he got. Phew.

-=-

The team spent, perhaps, a good hour talking to the golem, to make sure he’d still be happy enough for Aridia’s magic to fix itself. The guardians and their two Meridianite friends couldn’t be more thankful to finally return to Kandrakar and report – the girls still had school tomorrow!

“…so yeah, the guy’s happy now, and Aridia is saved!” Irma boasted, her arms making exaggerated gestures in the air. The elders merely nodded; the Oracle smiled.

“Thank you, Irma,” he said, and eyed Caleb and Blunk, “But, guardians, don’t you think it was a bit… excessive, to bring your friends from Meridian along?”

“It’s an honor to serve the guardians,” Caleb defended.

“Blunk not bad! Blunk good friend! Blunk help!” added the passling.

“We are thankful,” the Oracle said, “We do appreciate your service. But, you two even came with the guardians to Aridia!”

“Sir, we may be overextending their aid,” Will argued, “But they are of great help to us. They are valuable members of the team.”

The Oracle nodded. “Alright. You may go home now.”

The girls squealed in delight, while the two male members of their team merely bowed before the Council. They were enveloped in a bright light, and in seconds, they disappeared.

“Oracle,” asked Hallinor, “Is it that you do not approve of the young man and the passling?”

“None of the sort, my friend!” the Oracle clarified, “But, at this time, should they not be assisting Meridian? The terror from Phobos’ tyranny is still present, and not all of his loyal minions have been caught. The queen’s power may be far greater than her brother’s, but her political power is still weak compared to his.”

“I suppose,” Kadma agreed, “But if we were to send the boy and his friend back, who would replace them?”

The Oracle thought for a while, his eyes scanning the faces of his fellow elders. They all seemed to be wondering about Kadma’s question.

“But, do they really need to be replaced?” Luba doubted, “The boy is indeed a smart warrior, and the passling does his job well. Would it not be a good opportunity to see if the guardians can work on their own?”

The Oracle gave her a look and prepared to discuss with her, but words fell as another idea came to mind.

-=-

The sun went, the moon came, and then the sun was up in the sky again. It was just another day in Heatherfield…

Is it?

Irma was unusually _not_ taking very long in the bath. It was still winter, and the Lair household had been expecting her to stay twice longer, thanks to the weather. Not this season – well, this particular season and year, anyway. Something was up.

“You’re not doing anything funny, aren’t you, young lady?” Tom asked his daughter. The girl was singing a silly tune as she daintily cut across her pancakes and carefully guided her fork carefully to her mouth. Usually, she wolfed down on breakfast, and certainly did not mind the very unladylike way she did things.

“Irma’s acting so gross!” Young Christopher stomped into the kitchen. “I’m so mad I can’t get mad at her for being stuck in the bath!”

“Oh shush, Chris!” His sister giggled. “I’m just a lady, maturing into a very fine woman. It’s a good time to change my ways, isn’t it?”

Anna laughed at her daughter’s remarks. “Yes, honey. We girls can’t afford to be childish all the time. I’m proud of you, Irma!”

“Thanks, Mom.” Irma wiped her mouth with a napkin, and put her dishes away. “I’m heading out now, thanks for breakfast! Love you!”

She gave kisses to her family, and rushed out the door. Tom sighed.

“Dad!” Christopher whined, “That was so _gross!_ ”

The head of the Lair household sighed again, as his wife merely giggled. “Young love…”

-=-

Irma skipped along the road, excitedly heading towards the bus stop. Today… today again, she could see her beloved blonde crush again!

She’d been considering calling all blonde guys evil. Cedric, Phobos, Frost (ew), Martin at times, though she messed up that last one and turned out to be evil towards him. Okay, so it was wrong to call Martin evil, since Irma proved to be a bigger douche than he could be. (Still, she can’t excuse the way he squeezed himself into her life, when it was obvious that the answer was no.) Andrew Hornby and VMJ better be thankful they weren’t blonde.

The bus arrived, forcing Irma out of her thoughts… temporarily. As soon as she hopped inside, paid the fare, and chose a seat, she went back to daydreaming.

But still! She’s been meeting blonde men who were unappealing to her. And now, now there’s this blonde cutie at school who wasn’t evil and not unappealing. He was so smart, educated, and formal, but very friendly, helpful, and casual too! There was a lot to know about him… Italian descent, good with machines and technology, toned hunk with very sexy stubble, makes prescription glasses look very sexy, plays basketball with the guys, occasional wine lover…

“Ah… Raphael Sylla…” Irma cooed.

However, she knew nothing about the fact that she turned everyone’s clothes pink. Thankfully, people were still drowsy enough to credit the color change to having to get up so early. Fine with most of the women; bad for most of the men. Even the driver was baffled that he was suddenly wearing a pink uniform. Oh, even the bus turned pink!

But, Irma was oblivious to all that. She simply dreamed in her seat, of being invited to a nice dinner at a fancy restaurant, of being dressed in her best dress and her crush in a stunning tux, of eating the best food ever and laughing at nothing and everything, of watching fireworks while cuddling from the cold weather…

Oh, there was no helping it. She was certainly in love with her teacher, no doubt. But, so were a hundred or so other girls in their school. Oh, well. He did deserve to attract such a crowd – he was so suave and handsome and manly. Andrew Hornby was admittedly more handsome, but he was aloof at times. Vans Michael Justin was a star but unbelievably a geek like Martin, so he was suddenly not so appealing anymore. (But, of course, Irma will still support his career, because he sings and acts well.)

But Raphael Sylla, oh Mr. Sylla, it was as if a Greek statue came to life, landed on Heatherfield, and shared his knowledge with all these poor, unfortunate mortals. Heck, even the boys looked up to him! Waited for him at the court! Fought over which team he should be in! Took advice to him, listened to him, hanged out with him! Was there anything this man couldn’t do?!

“Sheffield Institute!” the (still baffled) driver announced, and Irma, along with a dozen other kids donned in pink, got off.

It would be a while before Irma would join her friends. She was too early, and that meant she had extra time to study for Sylla’s class. Perfect! She sat by a plant box far from the entrance, so she wouldn’t be bothered by the morning rush of students greeting each other good morning.

Soon enough, Will, Taranee, and Cornelia were gathered by the entrance, waiting for their friends. None of them had noticed Irma behind their schoolmates. Alchemy, Martin, Nigel, and Eric passed by, all choosing to go ahead and making a mention of Sylla. Cornelia understood it – fine, the guy was attractive in a mature way and he was smart, but she couldn’t accept how even Uriah and his pals talk about the guy so positively. It was good that Sylla inspired students, and helped them boost their scores and change for the better, but still! He was so… so…!

“Overrated?” Taranee supplied, “Come on. He doesn’t look that bad, and he actually teaches us, unlike Mr. Bottlom!”

“I can’t even remember Mr. Bottlom’s face,” Will added, “Besides, we have nothing to worry about. Phobos is in prison, and Nerissa’s sealed inside Elyon’s pendant and is deep within Meridian, wherever Julian threw it out, and the Heart of Aridia is happy again.”

“We promised him we’d visit,” Cornelia reminded.

“And that’s what? Once in a while? Come on, we need a vacation. A long one, actually.” Will’s eyes dropped to the ground. “I have two weddings to plan and attend. Just one, actually, but I don’t think Dean plans to make Mom wait too long. I don’t want any distractions.”

Cornelia’s bad mood faded away. “Oh, Will… I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—”

“It’s fine.”

Will was right. That last power-up they had, had been dangerous. They were guardians with responsibilities to the universe, but before that, they were simply girls. They still had their lives as normal citizens of Heatherfield, as normal human beings of planet Earth. Cornelia had her skating; Taranee had her grades; Will had her divorced parents finding better partners for themselves. The other planets would have to let the guardians have a break – they have problems of their own, too.

“Tell us if we can help, okay?” Taranee offered.

The three spent a good time in silence, before they were all tackled into a huge hug.

“Good morning, Sheffield!” Irma greeted – if they weren’t approaching her, she was approaching them – “Isn’t it a lovely winter morning? Come on, let’s get inside and warm up. Today is a very good day.”

Cornelia didn’t appreciate the extra enthusiasm, especially that she and Irma had differing views on Sylla. “Okay, what did you do with the real Irma?”

Will and Taranee laughed; Irma refused to let go.

“We’re enemies, remember?” Cornelia continued, “You like Sylla; I don’t like him, so if you please! Please don’t give me any of those Sylla-cooties! I beg of you! Oh, and, what’s up with the all-pink outfit? You’re going to catch his eye, for sure, and give him an eyesore!”

“No need to be dramatic, Corny.” Irma finally let go, but did not change her clothes back. “Feel free to hate me all you want, because…” She struck a pose and gave a sly smile. “I’m at the top of _all_ of Sylla’s classes! And I plan to keep it that way.”

Cornelia grumbled, grinding her teeth.

“Yeah, it’s a miracle!” Taranee agreed, “You actually beat me in Sylla’s class, ace after ace, and you’re surely get an A+ in your report card! You probably have the potential to be at the top of the school with me, you know, if you actually bothered to study?”

“Yep!” Irma danced around, resembling a sugarplum fairy in both her actions and her appearance, “But I’m not too interested. Besides, if I’m too smart, then Sylla can’t teach me anything anymore, right?”

The girls laughed. Cornelia commented, “Oh, you’re so hopeless. Now, turn your clothes back. It’s all pink.”

Irma now took time to glance at herself. “…oh. Um. Later in the washroom? You know? Too many people here, Corny!”

“Hey girls!” a boy called to them – a very familiar one, to be exact. Will gave a wide smile when she turned around.

“Hey Matt!” she greeted back.

“We’ll be late; let’s go in.” Matt gently pushed the girls towards the building. “Oh, where’s Hay Lin?”

“Out sick. She called last night. The difference in temperature gave her a cold.”

“Where were you again? Aridia?”

“Aridia. As in, arid desert.”

“Cool.”

-=-

The minutes ticked by, but no one noticed how fast time went. Not in Sylla’s class, anyway. He was teaching basic coding for today, and that was a subject that a lot of students usually failed to understand. He slowly went over the process, asking students to take note of every detail. He made sure that everyone could follow.

“So guys, this here,” Sylla pointed to the board, “is the very skeleton of a webpage, where it has the head… everyone follow? The head, which dictates the title of your page, as seen in the title tag. The body, which dictates your content. Both of which, head and body, are enclosed in the HTML tag. So as to command the computer, to tell it how to make a webpage appear. Any questions?”

Uriah raised his hand. “If it has a head and a body, where are the arms and legs?” Nigel, Kurt, and Laurent laughed behind him, as did several others in their class.

“HTML doesn’t have arms and legs,” Sylla explained, “There’s no need for them. It will only make things harder to understand. This section is called a head, because it contains a very brief summary of what should be in your main content, like the title of the page. The title should be saying what kind of content there is, right? Okay, um… for example, you see my face. Of course, you’d understand that, it’s Mr. Raphael Sylla. Then, there’s the body—”

Most of the girls widened their eyes and squealed, anticipating the imagery of his next lines.

“—which does into detail of what you’re looking for. My head, my brain to be exact, commands my body. My body does work, brings me to school, to stand in front of you, and sharpen your young minds. At the end of the day, my head tells me I need a break, and makes my body go to the court, score a few balls, and have a little chit-chat with my students. Understood?”

Not exactly the imagery that the girls were looking for. Still, it would give everybody a good mental image while typing in their code.

“Any more questions?”

Irma took her chance. “Um, why are the tags in pairs?”

Sylla nodded. “Good question, Irma.” _Oh my god, he called me by my name!_ “HTML tags are typically in pairs, because they tell your computer where to start and where to end. It’s not just the code itself; there are also text effects, font styles, tables, and so on. Here. Let me demonstrate it.”

He went to the board and erased “world”, replacing it with “<i>world</i>”.

“Alright guys, let’s type.”

His students faced their monitors and began typing. Sylla went to the other side of the board and wrote, “Hello _world_ ”, carefully slanting the letters for ‘world’.

“When you’re done,” he instructed, “Save your file, and open your file in Explorer to test the code. Right-click, open with Explorer. This here on the board,” he pointed, “should be your output. Hello world. ‘World’ should be italicized.”

Irma typed as fast as she can, so she can show Sylla immediately. The man observed different students from behind, walking slowly behind them as they copied the code into their computers. Irma quickly finished and tested her code, and looked at the board for reference. Yes! She got it right. But, was there a reason for Sylla to look her way, now that she was his best student? She wished he’d look at her anyway.

“So Irma, got it right?”

 _Oh my god._ Sylla turned towards her and checked her work. Irma had to remember how to breathe. He was bent over, which meant that his chest and his neck was at Irma’s face, and oh, that perfume of his was so, so dreamy! His shirt was open at the top, which gave Irma a small peek of his muscles. _Ooh la la_. His mumbling of “excellent” made it even harder to control herself. Her hands sparkled as she tried to keep them on her lap…

Taranee, who sat beside her, noticed how her friend’s denim pants were slowly turning pink. She sent a kick to Irma’s leg.

“Ouch!” Irma yelped.

“Sorry!” Taranee quickly apologized, “I’m just, um, uh…” Her eyes met with Sylla’s – he held a surprised stare too. “I felt insecure. I’m really sorry, Irma! That was horrible of me!”

She buried her face in her hands – what had she done?! Fortunately, Irma felt poor for Taranee, and leaned towards her.

“Oh, it’s okay, dearie. Let’s just study together!”

Taranee grunted, “Irma, your pants!”

“What?!”

Suddenly (and fortunately), Sylla chuckled. “Alright, you two. Just continue working!”

Irma suddenly became conscious, and hoped he didn’t notice. Heck, she hoped nobody else noticed, as she turned pink back to faded blue. Little did she know of the sly smile that Sylla wore, his eyes catching pink turn to blue…

-=-

Cafeteria food wasn’t dismal, not when the Silver Dragon’s contract with the school was still intact. Yan Lin served the food, and it was sort of funny to see her deviate from usual cheery self, pouting and grumbling about how her ‘twin’ Meera got to stay at home and care for ‘their’ granddaughter. Fortunately, Hay Lin would be fine by tomorrow, which meant that she can see her granddaughter at school by then. Will could only smile. ‘Must be kind of nice,’ she thought, remembering how her astral-drop-turned-altermere, who might as well be her sister like that…

The discussion about Irma’s almost mishap earlier simply passed Will’s ears. Matt can only contribute so much to the discussion, so Will was thankful to have someone by her side.

“You okay, Will?” he asked, “You’ve been out of loop.”

She sighed. “With all that happened with Nerissa and Phobos and Cedric, it’s just that… the things with my parents haven’t fully sunk in.”

“Yeah, these past months had been really weird. My parents were really worried sick when I went Shagon and monstrous and horrible. I’m sorry, I hurt you back then, didn’t I?”

“It’s fine, Matt. You were under Nerissa’s spell.”

“Still! Even without her spell, she managed to trick you guys. And you were the ones who had it tough.” Matt reached for Will’s hand, and held it tightly. “I can’t even imagine how you managed to do everything. Being Regent of Earth is a big responsibility, but being a Guardian of Kandrakar and savior of the universe… that’s even bigger.”

“But, I didn’t fulfill it without the girls’ help, without Caleb, or Blunk, or… or you. It’s _I_ who can’t imagine how it must’ve been hard for _you_. You weren’t part of the action, and I managed to destroy your life like that.”

“No, it’s okay, Will. You didn’t destroy my life. And, don’t worry.” Matt smiled. “No matter if it’s guardian stuff, or Earth stuff, or everyday life stuff, I’ll do my best to help you, okay? I care for you, so I accept this role. Even if, well, it’s a little weird.”

Will nodded, a smile forming on her face.

“Like, I’m Regent of Earth, and so is Huggles, who was just a dormouse but is now Kor, and then there’s Napoleon who was just a cat, before he was Lillian’s familiar and third regent. Lillian. Lillian Hale, grade schooler. She’s just a kid, but she’s the Heart of Earth. Crazy, huh?”

Will knew all that already, but she appreciated Matt’s attempt to cheer her up. “Yeah. I can’t even imagine telling her mom and dad. Cornelia might even not want to tell them, either.”

“Haha! It won’t be a very great day, I can tell. Both your daughters are magical, Mr. and Mrs. Hale! Congratulations!”

Will laughed.

“So...” Matt decided not to skirt around the issue any longer. “Wanna talk about _it_?”

“Yeah…”

The moment was ruined when Irma let out a high-pitched squeal. Their table laughed.

“Oookay.” Will shook her head. “Maybe next time.”

Matt agreed, “Sure. I’ll be here for you, so take your time, okay?”

“Thanks.”

The day carried on as usual, with no irregularities in sight. Truly, it seemed like a dream. Will was suddenly a normal girl again. She was back to attending school, listening to boring lessons, and being… not special. Oh, great, really. It was nice to take a break from guardian duties, but right now, it wasn’t that fun to be a normal girl.

She’d love to hang out with Matt after class, but he had band practice. None of the girls seemed available, either, so Will went straight home. When she got there, she reached for the phone.

“Hey Will!” she heard on the other line, “How’s it going, sweetheart?”

“Great, really!” But, Will knew it was far from great. “How about you, Dad?”

She was simply calling her dad to say hello and get updates about the upcoming marriage. Tony made it specific that if Susan knew, she’d throw a fit and forbid him from ever seeing Will again. What was it that made them divorce again? Will was too young to remember all the details, though from their interactions, she could guess that the reason was too many arguments. She was just so glad that her mother was kind enough to provide her details about their family tree during, well, that day with Elyon.

Still, Will wanted to be involved with Tony. They were father and daughter, after all. What was wrong with wanting to spend time with your dad? She didn’t know why it didn’t sit well with her mother; neither did Tony or Serena. Heck, even her own stepmother-to-be was even thrilled at the idea of meeting Susan, and Serena was disappointed to learn that Susan hated many things related to Tony. But, Serena reasoned, if Susan can get along okay with Will, who was related to Tony, then they women could get along too. They would deal with the situation like mature adults, and it’s probably just spite that made Tony and Susan not get along. Will had to be positive, as Serena taught her.

Would, would Will have to call Serena ‘Mom’ too? That felt like she would betray her own mother. Susan was so brave and patient. She had to deal with a little child, now a hormonal teenager who happened to be a guardian of the freaking Infinite Worlds. Susan had a lot of challenges, having to divide her time between work and daughter. Will couldn’t simply put that aside.

“Everything okay, dear?” Tony asked on the other line.

“Yeah,” she lied, “I’m just, you know, feeling like this is all a dream.” Truthfully, though. She felt like she was dreaming – dreaming of a nightmare, that was. Or at least, lucid-dreaming an almost-nightmare.

“I should be the one saying that. I didn’t even think you’d agree to our request.” Will couldn’t turn him away. Tony was her dad, for the world’s sake! “We’re still thinking of how to tell your mother, though. Serena wants me to invite her, but, I don’t know, sweetheart. I don’t want to spoil my day or her day.” True. The two of them would spoil the whole reception, given their, ahem, differences. “Well, you could help us, though I think that’s already too much. This is adult affair, ha-ha.”

Just then, the doorbell rang.

“Uh-oh.” Will gulped. “Mom’s here. Call you later, okay? Tell Serena I said hi.”

“Sure thing, Will!”

Will had to put the phone away quickly, and went to the door to greet her mother. Will thought of her dad’s words. How would she break the news? Wait, was it okay to break the news? Susan didn’t like many things related to Tony. Could Will tell her mother of the upcoming marriage? Would she like to know that somebody can handle her ex-husband? Would she like to know that Tony’s finally moving on?

But, when Will opened the door, she saw a familiar figure behind her mother. Heard him.

“I don’t even understand why that part was erased! It was so significant—! Oh, hello, Will!”

Argh. Dean. Dean Collins, her history teacher. She didn’t exactly hate him; he was a good person, and he made her mom happy. Will simply hated the fact that out of all people, Dean had to be her teacher. What if everyone at school knew? One of them would be forced to transfer, or else they’d be both accused of cheating. They might say that Dean favored her, or that she received test answers from Dean.

“H-hey, um, Mr. Collins…” she greeted. “Hello, Mom.”

“Hello, sweetie,” Susan greeted back. “I hope you don’t mind having Dean over for dinner.”

“Oh, of course not. Not…” Will glanced up at Dean, then back to Susan. “At all.”

Will still wanted her mom to be happy. Susan raised her and put up with her – how could Will not repay the love her mother gave her? She wouldn’t break the news. It was fine. She could tell her mother that she’s just helping her dad out, something like father-daughter stuff. That was acceptable, right? Will would just be out on a fine day with her biological father, wearing white and a corsage… ugh, no. It was obvious, too obvious.

Will had to figure out a way to tell her mom. But, not tonight, not over dinner, not when her mom seems so happy and ecstatic and just… ugh.

Will let the night pass by. Dinner went by in a blur – it was a night for Susan and Dean, after all. She quickly excused herself out of the scene, to brush her teeth and get in her pajamas. Tomorrow was another day for school, and another day to think things over with.

However, a fold suddenly appeared in front of her. _Oh no._ Kandrakar was calling, the pink waves swirling in the pool of energy. Will had to close the windows and curtains so no outsider would see. Hopefully, no one saw. She gulped. Oh, well. She was the one who thought that it wasn’t that fun to be a normal girl right now. But, hopefully, the distraction wouldn’t be that bad.

She thought about going guardian, but she figured that everyone was also in their sleepwear at this time. Oh, well. She went through the fold, and found herself in the white halls of Kandrakar. The other girls, sans Hay Lin, also in their sleepwear, were there, and so were Blunk and Caleb. The girls gave a shriek when they realized that Caleb was there, so he had to cover his eyes and turn away from them. Irma realized that Blunk was still staring, and she had to squirt water at him, to get him to copy Caleb’s actions.

“Oh, my sincerest apologies, girls!” Hallinor gave a bow. “I forgot about the boys.”

“Hallinor, you always have the worst timing,” Kadma commented. (Will chuckled.)

Luba clicked her tongue. “Let’s get to business.”

It was then that Will realized that, sans Blunk and Caleb, there were only girls here.

“You may be asking where the Oracle is, but don’t worry,” Hallinor assured, “He respects your privacy. I just forgot about Caleb and Blunk, that’s all.”

“Yeah, I think I realize that,” Will agreed.

Kadma said, “However, this also hints to what you’re here for. Orube, come.”

At the mention of the unfamiliar name, Luba reached her hand out, and the guardians’ eyes followed the direction. From the large doorway Luba pointed to, a woman walked out… a woman, or simply an older girl? The strange lady wore a white top-and-pants ensemble with teal green edges. Pink ribbons adorned her hair and waist. Across her back was a sword – a warrior, no doubt.

Similar to Luba, the stranger was feline-like, but her feline features were more prominent. Big ears and a tail, namely. Whisker-like marks on the jawline. Beautiful black eyeliner along the stranger’s striking golden eyes.

Will found it odd, though, that the warrior’s eyebrows were thicker, that her nose was black around the nostrils (like a cat), and that her lips had some sort of black lining (like lipstick). That last bit sort of reminded Will of Cedric’s real form. Except that his lips were purple. Ha, ha.

“Yes, please do take a good look at her,” Luba encouraged, “For she is your ally.”

Yikes. Had Will, or her friends for that matter, been staring too hard? Their new, um, ally was obviously very, um, woman-like in terms of figure, and it didn’t help that the stripes sort of added a different level of female allure. Will couldn’t deny that she herself suddenly felt very insecure of her own curves (or lack thereof). Good thing Caleb and Blunk had their eyes covered and backs turned.

“Pussycaaaat,” Irma drawled.

“W-what?” the very much cat-like stranger said. “Don’t call me that!”

“Here, Kitty-Kitty—OOF!”

Taranee elbowed Irma. Will nervously laughed. Things were off to a great(?) start.

“H-hello!” she said, “What’s your name?”

“…Orube of Basiliade,” the lady introduced herself, giving a slight bow with a palm against a fist, hands at chest level, “I offer you my service.”

“Um, thanks. I’m Will, Quintessence Guardian, Keeper of the Heart.” Will extended her hand, but quickly corrected herself. She chose to reciprocate Orube’s strange bow; a handshake might confuse her, or even come across as rude. “That’s Irma, the Guardian of Water, and Taranee, the Guardian of Fire, and Cornelia, the Guardian of Earth. Those two guys over there are Caleb and Blunk.”Will pointed to each of her friends. “The Guardian of Air, Hay Lin, isn’t here.”

Orube nodded. “Understood.”

Hallinor gave yet another apologetic smile. “Hay Lin is unwell, but we made sure that Yan Lin would tell her.”

“Blunk hear new girl, but Blunk smell cat,” the passling said, “Girl or cat?”

Will watched Orube wince. That, that definitely came across as rude.

“Blunk, she’s neither. She’s from Bal, um, Basiliade. She’s just a little different.”

“Basiliade cat-girl?”

“No, Blunk. She’s Orube.”

Fortunately, Orube didn’t say anything about the matter. But, what could a Basilite? Basiliadean? What could someone from Basiliade offer to the guardians?

“No offense, Hallinor,” Taranee voiced out, “And no offense to Orube either, but I don’t understand.”

Hallinor’s smile looked very apologetic. “Oh, just that, from this day on, girls, Orube will be fulfilling both Caleb and Blunk’s role.”

A chorus of “What?!” rang in the hall.

“With the Pussycat?!”

“Irma!”

Caleb and Blunk turned around and uncovered their eyes, though at the sight of Irma’s and Cornelia’s faces, the two males turned away again.

“But Blunk good! Bad business! Bad!” the passling protested.

“Yeah!” Caleb agreed, “I haven’t done anything wrong, have I? And what can _she_ do that I can’t?”

Luba explained, “She is my best pupil, and she is among the finest warriors of Basiliade. She can do both your functions, young man. Like Blunk, she has a keen sense of smell. Like you, she can fight. Unlike either of you, she is very strong, and she has little responsibility in her home right now.”

Will watched Orube wince.

“What do you mean, ‘responsibility at home’?” Caleb asked. “Wait, I know I did leave my commander post, but… that’s temporary!”

“Young man,” Kadma answered, “That is to say, your homeworld needs your aid more than the guardians do. You still have many towns to rebuild and many people to help. The reign of Phobos might be over, but not the reign of fear. You must help your queen restore your kingdom to its former glory, and you must spend more time doing so.”

“But, Queen Elyon gave us permission to go! And I like helping the girls out! And, the last time I stayed behind to help, Cornelia got angry at me. Besides, I want to make sure she’s all right. That stunt Nerissa suggested almost killed her, remember? And the rest of them, too!”

“Young man, we acknowledge that. However, the Council had made its decision. You and your friend will go back. Any additional aid that you would like to provide, Orube will.”

“But—”

“Does that mean I won’t be able to see him again, forever?” Cornelia asked.

Hallinor shook her head. “Of course, you may meet again. But, with the way things are proceeding in Meridian, I don’t think you will see each other again very soon. We recommend you think otherwise of folding to Earth, unless absolutely necessary.”

“Aww man!” Caleb stomped his foot. “That just sucks!”

Cornelia went over to him and stroked his back. “At least we can still see each other. It’s just temporary! I-it won’t be that bad…”

Caleb allowed himself to open one eye, and at least see his girlfriend’s face for the last time, before they part away and never see each other again, in a very long time.

Will cleared her throat, and said, “So, um, let’s get along, okay?”

Orube merely nodded. Will looked at her friends. Caleb and Cornelia were still lost in each other, and Blunk was definitely disappointed. Irma didn’t seem to mind and looked too sleepy to understand everything, except that she felt bare next to two boys and that their new teammate was apparently a cat person (literally). Taranee seemed willing to give their new ally a chance. Oh, they’d have to tell Hay Lin tomorrow, too.

“Orube will stay here in Kandrakar for the meantime,” Luba said, and many separate folds opened, back to everyone’s homes. “And for the meantime, you should rest.”

Will nodded. “Yes. Thank you, Luba.”

Caleb and Cornelia shared a deep kiss before they parted; Blunk trudged on sadly after Caleb. The other girls simply walked back to the folds. Will, however, paused to give one more look at Orube. The feline warrior raised an eyebrow, and looked away. Well, that was weird, but, Will would figure everything out tomorrow.


	2. Getting Along With Change

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Previously on The Crises in Three Worlds...
> 
> Arkhanta's land was dying, but Ari, its king, had worries he considers far worse - his son's mysterious "illness".
> 
> After a mission in Aridia that involved Caleb and Blunk, the Council of Kandrakar decided they should be replaced by Orube, a warrior from Basiliade. Caleb and Blunk, meanwhile, are to return to Meridian to help get it back in order after both Nerissa and Phobos messed it up.
> 
> Meanwhile, on Earth, Irma is crushing on the new computer instructor, Sylla, and Will's dad is getting married to Serena.

When Will woke up, nothing felt different.

She gathered the facts from last night – okay, Hallinor called them, introduced Orube of Basiliade, fired Caleb and Blunk, and sent them back. Was that correct? Oh, right. Will was torn between her parents, again, and even if she wished for their happiness, why was it that she herself felt so empty and sad?

Will stood in front of the mirror, and blew a stray strand of hair away from her face. A few small bolts of lightning appeared on her head, and she bumped her forehead against the glass. Man. She knew she had a good night’s sleep, but why was she feeling so tired? Mist formed on the mirror and she wiped it off. Ugh, why did it look like she had large bags under her eyes?

She didn’t understand how she made it through breakfast or to school, but either way, it felt better to be away from home right now.

“Hey Will!” Will looked around and saw Matt waving at her. “Man, you look tired! You want soda or something?”

Will smiled. Matt was so caring and attentive and patient; she wouldn’t ask for anyone else. As soon as he got close enough, she gave him a mega-hug. “No,” she grumbled into his shoulder, “I need a hug.”

He chuckled. “One hug, coming right up.” He reciprocated the hug, even holding on tighter. “Duty calls?”

“Nah, not really.” Will released her hold, and Matt followed suit. “Though it _is_ kind of a bummer. Caleb and Blunk are kinda out of commission. Kandrakar told them to serve Meridian, and, honestly, that is a valid reason. But, also honestly, I don’t know if we’ll be able to get along with our new teammate.”

Matt nodded. “What? Too bossy? Too suspicious?”

“Neither. Just… different.”

“Was it a boy?”

“No, a girl. An older girl.” Will let an image of Orube flash in her mind. “Kind of, um, like a senior, but um, college age, maybe?”

“I see. Maybe the age difference is a little bothersome? I feel giddy around older girls too.”

“Maybe. Or, maybe it’s because she isn’t from any world I know of.”

“Oh, well. But, no matter what, I’ll continue to support you in any way I can.”

Will smiled, but as she and Matt shared a meaningful stare, they were tackled to the snowy ground.

“Good morning, Sheffield!” Irma yelled into their ears, “And good morning, you pink perky poopy pumpkins! Love is in the air, but don’t let it ruin your record!”

Irma got up and ran into the building. Sigh. Will got up, sparks appearing at the top of her head.

“Don’t let it get to you,” Matt said, “And she’s right. Let’s go in. We can talk about things later.”

Will nodded. Oh, she hoped they can talk later, alright.

-=-

The birds sang tunes over the sky, and the winter weather was ever so magical. But Caleb’s mood was already sour, and he’d already raised his voice to three of his men. It didn’t help that the last guy was only asking if he wanted to eat; Caleb hadn’t eaten anything for breakfast. His father was even confused at the unusually ill behavior.

But, who could blame him? He was bored of all these paperwork, mostly reports from the different villages comprising the kingdom. He's read the same things over and over - requests for more aid, more donations, more everything that Queen Elyon couldn't provide, especially during wintertime when food was bound to be scarce. Oh, and everybody seemed to be panicking. That didn't help anything at all to their situation, not when thieves and bandits ran rampant.

Phobos did an excellent job scaring everyone into this dishonorable state. Where were the people who celebrated the Queen's return? Were the citizens of Meridian not happy that the rightful heir is on the throne? When could he return to listening to boring hugong land feuds, instead of hearing (or reading) about this madness?

Caleb stood from his chair, and stomped out into the halls. No one attempted to make conversation with him, as he made way to... wherever he felt like heading to. Honestly, he wanted to go to Earth and stay with Cornelia. She could be crazy enough to do something like going into Zenith mode again. But, Earth was off-limits for now, Kandrakar said. But yeah, how was he supposed to solve the problems here in Meridian when its people didn't want to cooperate with Her Majesty's rule?!

"So, it turns out that Count Haseldorf was behind the bandits this time."

Caleb overheard something interesting as he passed by a room, so he took a few steps back and peeked. Raythor, Drake, Aldarn, and a few other men were around a table. At the end of the table, Tynar and some others were keeping a man tied in a chair. He was probably the so-called Count Haseldorf, judging from the way the others looked at him, the way he looked himself. A bright red cape hung from his shoulders, and there were numerous jewels hanging on his vest.

"I'm not!" cried the fugitive, "I was taken hostage!"

Drake slammed the table. "Don't try to reason with us, Haseldorf," he growled, "I heard the bandits talking. Also, those jewels on your chest match a few of the missing jewels in the treasury." At the mention of the jewels, Aldarn grabbed them off the man's clothes.

“The Moonstone Amulet, the Greenest Envy, the Crest of Gwendolya…” Aldarn listed the ornaments one by one as he examined them. “Man, you must be pretty important.”

The fugitive shrieked. "Well, I can't be held responsible for them! Prince Phobos gave them to me!"

"All the more reason to throw you into the prison."

"You can't do this! I'm the biggest and best provider of hugongs!" Aye. Didn’t Caleb wish to hear about hugong feuds? Well, this one was a hugong merchant, or breeder. Whatever. Ha-ha.

Aldarn sighed. "And we're sure you only got there because you bribed and destroyed the other hugong farmers. Take him away."

The man squirmed and kicked in his seat, but to no avail. Tynar and his men dragged the fugitive away, towards the dungeons of the castle. The soldiers were a bit shocked to see their commander standing by the door, but they merely gave Caleb a salute before they left. Sigh. Word did get around. He walked inside the room.

"Oh, Caleb!" Aldarn greeted with a smile, "I thought you were doing paperwork?"

"Yeah, but I got bored," Caleb answered, and turned to Raythor. "What's the latest update? Besides, you know, the usual. Where everyone's asking for us to provide what we can't give them? I mean. What's your latest on the bandits thing?"

Raythor read from a paper. "So far we've identified two major bandit groups. One, of course, led by Count Haseldorf. He is one of Prince Phobos' biggest supporters. We're yet to determine if there is some sort of recruitment process."

"Woah, wait." That sort of reminded Caleb of something. "Like the rebellion?"

"I'd call it a revolution, Sir." Raythor smiled. "But yes, it was like that."

"We detect a pattern in the second group's movements," Drake reported, pointing to a map on the table, "They move from town to town. In each of the towns, they recruit a few men, attack the town, then move again. However, their choice of towns seems to be very random."

"There isn't anything alike between two consecutive towns, and they are not next to each other either," added Raythor, "There isn't a shape being formed by their movements, and we can't predict where they would attack next."

"We've only caught three of their grunts, and we haven't gotten anything useful out of them yet."

Caleb hummed in deep thought. "Have you tried interrogating the other bandits? How about Count Haseldorf?"

"The others don't seem to know about this group, and Haseldorf is only interested in making himself rich. Why would he want to make a rival group?"

Caleb nodded. Damn it. There wasn’t much progress everyday, and the Queen was in danger of getting dethroned again. He needed to get this quickly over with, so he could go back to Cornelia's side. He shouldn't keep her waiting for so long.

But, he should keep his cool. As a commander, he had to, so his men would find confidence and courage to move forward and do their tasks. "Alright. Just keep it up. I'll have to consult a few things with her Majesty later."

However, Caleb could only keep his temper for so long. He had to drag Aldarn away from his examination of the stolen jewels, while simply saying, "Gotta get sparring with my best friend! Can't get rusty now!" as an excuse. Surely, both Drake and Raythor were confused by their commanders' actions. Argh. Caleb was so out of rhythm today. But, who was to blame him? He only wanted to be with the one he loved with all his heart and soul!

-=-

"This isn't good."

The Oracle declared, as soon as he dismissed the view-fold. The talk did not go well, and even the other elders were whispering among themselves behind him. The man on the other end of the fold was not too willing to negotiate.

"We can't simply send the guardians," Hallinor argued, "They represent Kandrakar _and_ the Oracle. Why would _that man_ want to see them?"

"Come on! That man doesn't even want to listen to us," Kadma said, "The girls will do just fine. I believe in their ability."

Tibor added, "They're young. I'm sure he won't treat them with such impudence."

"This isn't a task for them," Luba disagreed, "And have you no shame? We here should know what's for the best! And yet, we can't even persuade a single man! What can we expect out of these youngsters who represent us?"

The Oracle sighed, and joined the conversation. "It wouldn't hurt to try, Luba. We cannot upset him with our persistence."

"Sir, you can't—"

"We have put them in more dangerous situations than this one," the Oracle explained, "Surely, we can trust them with this task."

The Council grew silent. Things were wordlessly agreed upon. It was a logical decision, and an acceptable one.

-=-

The school bell rang, which signaled the end of classes. Teenagers in need of sweet, sweet freedom ran out the doors, and so did Irma, who was in need of watching Sylla play with the boys before she went home. On the way to the basketball court, she bumped into Cornelia.

"Oh, sorry!" Irma apologized, "I kind of have something to do. I, I don't mind if you guys go on ahead. I... might take a little long, haha! See you!"

Cornelia hadn't even said a word or fully understood what happened, but Irma quickly dashed off. It didn't take a while for the blonde to put things together, and it certainly didn't take her a while to storm off and start complaining to their friends.

"Sylla this, Sylla that, I'm so tired of it!" she yelled. Matt and Will gave her a goofy smile.

"Keep it down!" Taranee hushed, "If his groupies hear you, they'll start bullying you!"

"So what? It's not like they know better! You like him; that's fine. But you gotta shout it at the top of your lungs? Or if you stalk him around and squeal and celebrate all the times he notices you? Ugh! Give me a break! I need the old Irma back, even if she calls me by stupid names. She's more bearable!"

"No can do," Hay Lin said, "You're a changed person when you're in love!"

Matt and Will smiled at each other. However, the boy suddenly remembered something. "Really?" he said, very much in disbelief, "Then how about Cedric?"

"Ew!" "Gross!" "Um, no?!" "Ugh, Matt." The girls were pretty much unanimous in their opinion. Matt regretted asking.

"Take it easy, girls!" He tried to lighten up the mood. "I was just asking. I think they aren't that serious, you know."

"No, no!" Cornelia stopped him, "We are NOT talking about it! No! Ew! End of discussion. Zip it."

"Okay, okay, okay! Wrong turn." Matt tried to think of another topic. "Oh right! How about your new teammate? We didn't really get to talk earlier, Will. I'm sorry about that."

Will shook her head, remembering how Matt was dragged off by his friends just as she started to tell the events from last night. "It's okay. Wreck 55 can't do without their lead."

"So yeah. About, what was her name again? Oro... Orube?"

"She's okay, I guess. She’s a cat, and I’m more or less okay with cats as long as they keep to themselves." Cornelia shrugged, and frowned. "What's not okay is that I don't get to see Caleb again."

"I'm sorry about that."

Taranee said, "I appreciate Caleb’s concern about us and Zenith mode, though I think the Oracle was more or less right. He does belong in Meridian, after all. He's the commander of Elyon's royal guard. But, the way that he was dismissed from the team was, well, a little rude for me."

"I guess I didn't miss anything, then!" Hay Lin giggled. "I was worried that I might be fired next."

They all laughed.

"Oh, Hay Lin!" Will gave her friend a pat on the back. "I don't think the Oracle would do that just because you were tardy. He isn't the principal!"

Hay Lin's imagination worked a little too hard. "Oh gosh, I just imagined him in Mrs. Knickerbocker's uniform!"

"Now that's disgusting!" Matt faked a vomiting sound, and that made everyone laugh a little harder.

Suddenly, they heard what seemed to be the sound of something glittering, glowing, and pink – the Heart of Kandrakar! It was calling to them, and it was trying to get out of Will’s bag. Will grabbed onto it and covered it with her hands. She scanned the surroundings for prying eyes. Luckily, there was no one.

“Matt,” she instructed, “Go get Irma. Meet you…” Will looked around again for a good hiding place. “In the alleyway behind that bookstore, ASAP.”

“Okay.” He dashed off, and the girls went to the place Will directed them to. The bookstore… seemed really, really familiar.

“Of all places, why did it have to be Cedric’s bookstore?” Cornelia questioned. “This place still gives me the creeps, and his act weeks ago isn’t exactly forgettable! Remember?!”

“Don’t!” Hay Lin yelped, “Don’t say it! Please don’t! Please!”

“What’s more gross than spiders?” Taranee recited, “Spiders dating snakes.”

“Ewwww! Taranee!”

“Heh.” Will chuckled. “Let’s just hope that Irma gets here ASAP!”

Meanwhile, Irma was cheering right next to Sylla. The teacher chose to be today’s coach for Nigel’s team, which meant that Irma could see him up closer. Sylla noticed her, and called her over, much to her glee. She watched him tell Nigel and his friends some neat techniques, tips, and tricks, and even taught them some maneuver to get a sure three-pointer.

However, much to her annoyance, just as Nigel tried out the move Sylla taught him, Irma felt a hand grab her leg and missed watching the shot. She yelped and kicked the perpetrator in horror, but she was even more horrified when she saw that it was Matt – that he made his way through the snow and the crowd’s feet, and that she had kicked him on the head.

“Matt!” she yelled, “What are you even doing?!”

“Woah, take it easy there!” Sylla said, “But, Mr. Olsen, what _are_ you doing by a lady’s feet?” Irma’s heart jumped at being called a ‘lady’.

“Hey, I’m sorry!” Matt answered, rubbing the spot Irma kicked, “I couldn’t find you at the back, but everybody was pushing each other. I had to take another way.”

“Couldn’t you just have… I don’t know, called me or something?” Irma groaned, “Thanks to you, everyone was distracted, and nobody saw if Nigel scored!”

Matt immediately regretted doing what he did to get Irma’s attention, but knowing how much she ignored everything when she was on ‘Sylla Fan mode’, he knew that nothing would be better. Nigel’s “It’s okay, man! I made a mistake and the ball bounced off the ring,” didn’t really assure Matt, nor did Sylla’s confused face, and definitely not Irma’s very annoyed expression. But, the memory of the other girls waiting for her, told Matt that he shouldn’t be wasting time regretting things.

“Irma, the girls,” he said, as he stood up, “The girls need you. G-talk,” which was code for ‘Guardian stuff, need you ASAP’, and made Irma’s eyes widen, “ASAP.”

“Oh, where?” she asked.

“Bookst—” Matt paused. There were several bookstores in Heatherfield, and the one that Will pointed to seemed closed for business. Too suspicious. “Argh, I’ll lead you there!”

Matt grabbed Irma’s wrist, and they ran off. Irma waved at Sylla, bidding, “Bye, Mr. Sylla! See you in class!”

The teacher raised his eyebrow. _Really, what now…_

“Could you please excuse me for a while?” he said, and followed the teens.

-=-

“Why did we _have_ to meet at Cedric’s bookstore?!”

“Will, I know that the altermere thing scared you, but your mom’s gonna kill you if there’s no Will to come home to!”

“Oh, oh! I hope we get along!”

The guardians arrived, quite noisy and unaware that they were travelling to a place of tranquility. The Oracle took no offense from it; he interpreted it as a deep bonding between the girls. Behind him, Luba frowned, and Orube simply watched with little emotion on her face.

"Greetings, guardians," said the Oracle. The girls quieted.

“Hey Kitty~” Irma greeted Orube, but at the sight of the warrior’s face crumpling, Will immediately pulled Irma behind her.

"Sir, what is the task at hand?" the Keeper asked.

The Oracle quickly cut to the chase. "As with last time, you need not fight. But, this task may come to you as a surprise, guardians."

"Last night was a surprise in itself," Cornelia whispered to her friends.

"Not really," Irma whispered back, "It could be cool to work with a kitty-cat. Plus, you and Caleb make out a lot."

"Oh, we do not!"

"Shh!" Taranee hushed, "Quiet, you guys!"

"As I was saying," the Oracle continued, conjuring up several images of simple villages, forests, and a palace at the top of a hill, "The world you will go to is called 'Arkhanta'. Arkhanta may be a small world with everlasting summer, but there's an enormous power dwelling in it. Humans coexist with various faefolk, some kinder than others, but the one in question is not one of those."

The image swirled, and change to that of a woman with green stones on her head, framed by long, disheveled greenish-blonde hair.

"This you see here is a banshee. Banshees are the most powerful and cruelest of all faefolk in Arkhanta." The Oracle paused, and an image of a man appeared. He appeared very old and weary to the girls. "However, a mere human has managed to harness the power of a banshee, and he is now challenging Kandrakar!"

The image swirled again, and it showed the same man, seemingly younger, ploughing the fields. "His name is Ari, and despite his looks, he is a young farmer. Like any other, he lived a plain life, filled with labor, toils, and simple joys."

The image changed, and now showed Ari and a beautiful red-haired woman getting along. "Ari had a wife, Jamayeda, a bright and cheerful woman, and he loved her more than anything else in the world." The image changed again, to that of Ari weeping by Jamayeda's bedside. An older woman, perhaps the midwife, looked on with tears as she tried to rock a crying baby to sleep. "However, she died giving birth to Maqi, their only child. Ari was devastated, but he was determined to give everything he had for Maqi."

The images flashed slowly - Maqi as a baby, as a toddler, as a young child. There seemed to be nothing wrong at first glance, but the guardians knew there was something off. The Oracle said, "Maqi is strong and healthy, as you can see, and Ari never failed in his duties as a father. But, as you can tell, Maqi is quite... different. He is more silent and solitary, whereas other children are lively and friendly. Ari's heart was tested, and he questioned himself if he'd done anything wrong. Believing it to be an illness, Ari tried everything to remedy Maqi's affliction."

Images flashed once more. Ari took Maqi on horseback to reach many different old men, all of which shook their heads at the farmer. "Wise men, physicians, scholars... but, no man could do anything for Maqi. With little hope in his heart, Ari decided to take a gamble, and turn to the faefolk for help."

"Fae… you mean, the banshees? But why the banshees?" Irma asked, "There’s lots of other fairies around, right?"

"Yes, that’s true," the Oracle answered. The image changed to that of a swamp filled with banshees. "But Ari's patience was growing short. As I've said, banshees are very powerful, but they can be rather cruel. A captured banshee will grant three wishes in exchange for her freedom, but she is sure to take revenge as soon as she is free again."

The image swirled, and it changed to that of Ari waiting among the swamp foliage. A banshee came into view, and using a long ribbon, Ari caught her. She struggled for a time, but found that her power could not work against him. "Ari studied forbidden books, and he successfully captured this banshee named Yua!" The images became visions of the past, and the guardians could hear the conversation.

"Three wishes for my freedom, son of man!" offered Yua with a brave face, despite having thrashed and trembled when she tried to get away. Ari's face brightened.

"One wish will suffice, banshee!" he said, "I want you to cure my son! I want to see him happy, like other children."

"What you ask of me, I cannot give you!" Ari's face fell. "Manipulating life and death are beyond my capacity."

The visions went mute, and the Oracle spoke again. "However, not even banshee magic could help his beloved Maqi, and Ari's world came crashing down around him. That is, for Yua and the other banshees could only grant _material_ requests."

The image changed to that of the palace at the top of a hill. "And so, Ari's first wish was for a new house - the Scarlet Citadel, an enormous, marvelous palace in which Maqi could lead a tranquil life."

The palace changed to what seemed to be the Citadel's treasure room, filled with many gold coins, chests of various jewelry and gems, and other such items. "His second wish was for immense wealth, so that Maqi may have anything he might have desired."

"And, his last wish?" Will asked.

"That is where you come in," the Oracle said, and the image changed into a vision of the past once more.

"You will forever be at my service," Ari said, his voice void of any emotion, "To serve me with no question, to grant my every wish! _Forever_."

Yua's face paled. She struggled to get away, but the ribbon - no, bindings - prevented her. "Son of man! Did I not give you what you wished for? Why did you trick me?!"

Yua screamed and screamed, but Ari pulled on her bindings. The banshee gave a cry as the bindings choked her. Ari commanded, "Silence, banshee! Servants do not speak to their masters this way." Using the bindings, he dragged her away, and she fell to the ground, gasping for air, trying to resist with all her might.

The guardians were appalled at the visions they saw, but the Oracle quickly dissolved everything.

"He did not succeed in 'helping' Maqi, and he became even more sorrowful than before. But, with nothing else to do, Ari turned his focus towards Arkhanta. He went against nature - dissipating storms, calming the waves, solving the drought. He used Yua's powers to drive away faefolk from their forest homes, so people can start new settlements."

Taranee asked, "So, we have to ask him to step down?"

"No, Taranee." The Oracle shook his head. "You must leave the question of leadership to the people of Arkhanta, for they have survived without a leader before. But, you are correct in thinking that he cannot hold such power. There is no justice nor logic. He cursed my name; he cursed Kandrakar. Without anything else to believe in, he put blame in Kandrakar for his son's fate! You must convince him to free the banshee. Her imprisonment is simply unjust."

"Soooo, lemme get this straight," Irma recounted, "This Ari guy doesn't like that his son isn't like other kids, kidnaps this babe from the lake, gets his wish rejected, transforms the land, becomes supreme wise overlord overnight, and now you want us to get him to free the babe? Wait, did you say he hates Kandrakar, because if you don't see it, we're the Guardians of the Infinite Worlds, which you protect? So like, in essence, we represent you? Hello?!"

Luba frowned at the lack of respect in Irma's speech, but the Oracle only smiled. "The Council has tried, but he does not wish to bargain with me, the Oracle. Ari demands that his son be healed, and only then will he release the banshee. But, that is absurd. Kandrakar cannot give in to such a selfish request."

"I don't see why it's selfish for a man to ask his son be healed," Taranee reasoned, "But I guess it's a bit overboard if you ask the Oracle to do so.”

“Maybe Maqi's just shy," Hay Lin assumed.

“Or, you know, one of those so-called diseases that aren’t actually diseases,” Cornelia suggested. “Hm, maybe I should take up medicine in college. You never know when it might come in handy.”

“Anyone else has questions?” Will asked. No one raised their hands and voiced any concerns, and Orube seemed satisfied with the information. “Alright, Sir. We’re ready.”

The Oracle nodded and waved his hand. A fold appeared next to the guardians. “Good luck,” he bade, “May success be on your side.”

The girls went in one by one, and Will was last to follow. Orube hesitated, but Will only stretched her hand out. “Come on.” Orube nodded, and went in the fold, with Will after her. The fold closed, and the Council was left to themselves.

“What were we thinking?” Luba questioned, “Why would Ari listen to them, when he has turned us away?”

Hallinor nodded. “I’d like to agree with you, but I don’t think we should doubt them now.”

“They were chosen as the guardians,” the Oracle said, “And even Orube is with them. There is enough reason to trust them.”

Luba sighed. “I hope so.”

-=-

"I hope it's just one bad day Caleb! Oof! You're doing too well for a – _ack!_ – a sparring session."

“What?! Can’t take a pounding?”

But, Aldarn was right. For a sparring session, Caleb was way too serious. It was as if the former rebel leader was in a real battle; he was too aggressive, eager, and perhaps, desperate. Their swords clashed and clanged; even the spectators agreed that Caleb was giving his friend a rough time. The temperature rose higher and higher, even as the snow outside started to fall.

Once again, Caleb out-maneuvered Aldarn, and a sword went flying in the air. The sound of the metal clattering on the ground rang louder than the hands clapping for Caleb’s yet another win.

“One more round,” he raised, but Aldarn shook his head.

“Oh, come on, Caleb. I’m glad you’re back to take control of the army, but if fighting with me all day is your way of celebrating, count me out. You’re exhausting me too much!”

“Darn it! Even you?!” Caleb threw his sword aside and stomped away. “If you don’t want to, I’ll just find some other guy.”

“Okay, so where’s all this heat coming from?” Aldarn asked himself. To his relief, Julian appeared at the door, and blocked Caleb from exiting the sparring hall.

“Caleb!” the older man said to his son, “What are you doing here?! Aren’t you supposed to be sorting through some very important documents?”

The young commander scratched his head. “I was, but—” Caleb considered saying that everything was so boring, but he skipped over that detail. “But I went to check on how my men were doing, and now I’m sparring with Aldarn. He doesn’t make much of an opponent today, so I’m off to find someone else.”

“Do find someone else another day, Caleb. In your stead, I looked at the documents you were sorting, and I found that a page of a very important treaty got mixed up there. The Queen is heading to the people with whom she is having that very important treaty with, right now.”

Uh-oh. Caleb gulped. “Oh. Um. Uh…”

“If you were doing your job, Caleb, you wouldn’t have missed this document, and you would have given this to Her Majesty before she departed. I would scold you even more, but we’re only losing time here.” Julian placed the document inside a parcel, inserted the parcel in a pouch, and handed the pouch to Caleb. “Now, get going! We can talk again when you come back.”

“Uh, uh,” Caleb was at a loss for words, but he could not deny his father’s words, either. “Yes, Father! I’ll be going now!”

He rushed to work on his task, leaving Julian and Aldarn in the sparring hall. Darn it! Caleb let his emotions get the better of him and made him neglect his duty. He had to calm down. He had to trust the guardians, to trust Cornelia. He should not let the distance or the memory of Zenith mode bother him.

“I can do this! I can do this!” he chanted, again and again, and reached the stables. “Your fastest horse!” he told the groom, “I need the fastest horse for her Majesty!”

The groom fetched a white stallion for Caleb. The former rebel leader leaped onto the stud’s back, and rode it quickly outside. Now, where to… uh-oh. He forgot to ask Julian where the Queen was heading, and he’s reached a forest before he thought of it! He slapped his hand against his forehead. Dammit. No. He had to calm down. Calm down. Now, who could help him get to the Queen. Someone who might know where she was heading, or someone who could track her down…

“Blunk!” he screamed in delight, “I need Blunk!”

He slowed down his horse, and sniffed the air. Ugh, no Blunky Boo, as the passling’s mother called him. Ugh. He already surrendered the walkie-talkies to Will, since Meridian did not have a way to, as the girls said, recharge those devices. Fortunately, Caleb knew how to draw that certain passling out. “Friend Caleb, calling Friend Blunk! Friend Blunk, do you hear me? Friend Blunk!”

He kept calling for Blunk, until heard branches crunching. The horse certainly smelled the passling, and started to get uneasy, stomping his hooves. Caleb sniffed the air – ah, yes, there was it. The passling smell… of garbage.

“Friend Caleb need Blunk!” the passling greeted as he jumped into view, “Do guardians need Blunk?”

“No, Blunk,” Caleb corrected him, “But the Queen needs you. Come on, help me find her. We have a document to deliver to Her Majesty!”

“Okay! One Queen, Blunk find!”

The passling started sniffing the air, and went ahead of Caleb. Unfortunately, the horse was faster than Blunk, so Caleb brought the passling up onto the horse’s back. Not a bad arrangement, though Caleb knew he had to explain to the groom why the horse needed extra washing. Ha-ha.

But, he’ll do that later. Right now, he had to get a document to the Queen, and hopefully, he didn’t have to pass the document right in front of the other party. Or else, that would be humiliating for both himself _and_ Elyon herself!

-=-

“It isn’t that hard to get in here, isn’t it?”

True as Cornelia spoke. Will only had to ask a few Arkhantans, and the guardians and Orube already made it up the hill. Really. For a man who was this crazy, he sure convinced everyone else he wasn’t. The Arkhantans were so happy despite their problem, and they welcomed their guests with open arms as they spoke of Ari so generously.

Even Will could see it – the bright smiles on their sun-kissed faces, the sweat down their wrinkled brows, the difficult tasks they face with so much positivity. She couldn’t tell to their faces that they weren’t here to praise Ari. It was true that she couldn’t make up her mind whether he was good or bad, but she was sure that keeping a woman imprisoned for selfish reasons was just not right. The thing was, nobody seemed to believe it wasn’t right.

“But, it might be hard to get him to change his mind,” Hay Lin said, “You did hear what the people said right? That he’s such a good person, wise and patient and very simple!”

“I can’t imagine the guy being _that_ simple!” Irma shook her head. “This citadel thing is huge. How can you not be hiring maids and guards for this place?”

“I know! What can you say, Orube?”

Hay Lin, being absent from the other night’s ‘meeting’, had been attempting to socialize with Orube. So far, the Basiliadean warrior hadn’t been very responsive, or even interested in talking about their mission. She merely shrugged at Hay Lin’s prompt. That made Cornelia frown and whip her head around.

“Ugh,” she complained, “I wish Caleb was here.”

“Caleb again,” Irma mocked, “Caleb this, Caleb that! You’re so irritable these days.”

“Well, if a certain blonde guy didn’t exist, and if a certain guy was here, then maybe I won’t be so… ‘irritable’, as you say it.”

“Come on guys, don’t fight now! We won’t be convincing,” Taranee instructed, “We have to stay united.”

“Yes,” Will agreed, “Nobody says anything offensive, not towards Ari, or his son, or Arkhanta, or even towards each other. Unity. We are as one. Oh! We’re nearing the entrance now, look!” Will pointed to the large doorway, decorated by ornate golden carvings. There was no door, and only two guards stood there.

“Okay, from this point on,” Will continued, “No one talks out loud. Everyone in the mental link, okay?”

Will heard Taranee explain a few things to Orube in their mental link, but the Keeper of the Heart chose to ignore it. The guardians and the Basiliadean warrior kept walking towards the doorway. One of the guards drew near; the other held his shield and spear up.

“Please state your business,” said the guard.

“We come in peace,” said Will, “We would like to…” _‘Seek audience with Ari,’_ Taranee whispered through the link. “…seek audience, with your King, Ari.”

The guard nodded and instructed her companion to draw his weapon back. She then turned to the girls and said, “Please follow me.”

They went after her, Orube following behind them. The interiors of the palace did look tranquil; its beautifully-crafted walls of faint purple and pillars of pale pink giving an illusion of wide space. The large windows added to that glamour; its golden frames reflecting the sunlight against marbled floor.

_‘They’re surprisingly… polite,’_ Irma commented, _‘So unlike Phobos’ guards. And this place doesn’t look very evil to me, unlike Phobos’ evil castle.’_

_‘Phobos?’_ Orube asked, _‘Of Meridian?’_

_‘Yup!’_ Hay Lin answered, _‘Everyone there was so mean, or told to be mean.’_

_‘Mean…?’_

_‘Mean, um, meaning bad! Everyone was bad, instructed to be bad, err, haha.’_

“May I know who are they, who seek audience with our Lord?” the female guard said, sending the girls’ focus out of their mental link.

“We are the Guardians…” Will paused, unsure if she should add ‘Kandrakar’. She chose not to.

_‘Yeah, let’s break the news to Ari himself.’_ Taranee agreed with Will’s decision.

“And, um, our friend, Orube of Basiliade. We, um, the rest of us, uh, come from Earth.”

_‘Ugh, Will! You shouldn’t have—’_

“Strange people from strange lands I’ve never heard of.” The woman chuckled. “Nice to meet you! I’m Tala, from Urdath. You must be from the new towns, then. Your peoples are strange.”

_‘The new towns?’_ Cornelia asked.

_‘The settlements Ari made from pretty much forcing faefolk out of their homes,’_ Taranee answered, _‘Didn’t you hear the folks earlier say so?’_

_‘Oh. Really? Wow. That’s disturbing. Ew. No.’_

The group stopped before a large wooden door. Tala turned to them. “I will inform his Lordship, then I will call for you to enter.”

"Okay." Will nodded, and the team was left outside the hall. Taranee pressed her ear against one of the doors, and immediately brought up, "Okay, timeout. Is Ari really as evil as we think he is? Nobody’s here! Where are his guards?"

"Shhh, not so loud," Cornelia said, "And you, warrior. I mean, Orube. Is he on the other side of the door?"

Fortunately, Orube did reply this time, after a bit of sniffing in the air. "I sense the guard and a man on the other side of the door. No one else is within ten meters, except for a child… and a woman. But they are far beyond this door."

Before Irma had to chance to suggest it might be Maqi and possibly Ari’s new wife, Cornelia spoke again. "How sure are you?" Irma elbowed Cornelia, causing the Earth Guardian to yelp.

"Don't mind her," Hay Lin told Orube, "She just misses her boyfriend a lot."

"Boyfriend..." Orube repeated, confused.

"You know, lover. Sweetheart. Romantic partner. Any of those words familiar to you?"

Orube thought for a while, and answered, "You mean... marriage partner?"

Hay Lin laughed. "I don't think they've thought that far. But, he's a potential candidate, and one she favors a lot."

“Marriage partner? Seriously?” Cornelia whispered to Will, “This girl is driving me nuts. First, she replaces Caleb _and_ Blunk out of the blue. Next, she joins us on this mission like we’re friends. Now, her language is driving me crazy!”

“Give her a chance, Cornelia!” Will scolded her friend, “I didn’t like Caleb at first either. Besides, the Council had a point. Caleb does need to stay behind in Meridian. Didn’t you have this discussion before?”

“Yeah! But this time, he gets to stay behind because of the Oracle! Not because he chose it. He’s being forced to stay in Meridian!”

“I don’t know, Cornelia. For all we know, he might be saving the day.”

“Or rotting in boredom.”

The door opened, disturbing the girls’ discussions.

“He will see you,” Tala said, and held the door open for them. The guardians cautiously walked inside. “Don’t be scared. Ari is a kind and benevolent man. I’m sure he will listen to you.” Tala had to urge Orube inside. Was she scared?

_‘Are you all right, Orube?’_ Taranee asked in their mental link.

_‘No,’_ Orube answered, _‘This place… feels cold.’_

Or maybe, it was just fear, as suspected. Will herself could feel a chill up her spine. Taranee gulped; they were about to face a very important man after all. Cornelia walked a more confident stride, eager to get the mission over with, but still had enough control over her emotions. Hay Lin considered controlling the wind to make it a little warmer. Irma tailed behind them as she watched Tala close the door and leave them inside; behind everyone else was Orube.

In front of them, at the end of the large room with lavish golden windows, pink pillars, a red carpet, and a simple wooden chair with only a cushion on it, was the man they sought. Ari. The dark and coarse-looking hair, the tuft of graying hair, the many wrinkles on his face, the tanned skin from working under the sun, and the tired eyes did not match the fur-lined jade-colored cape hanging on his shoulders, much like how the wooden chair did not match the rest of the room.

So, this was the… “simple” ruler, as the other Arkhantans mentioned. Simple, like how he only wore a cape to signify his rule, but still wore plain clothes of faded fabric; like how he chose to have only a wooden chair, despite a red carpet laid out on the floor. This was the throne room. It did not look like a throne room, for the wooden chair ruined the whole atmosphere, in addition to the walls being very bare and the fact that there was no guard standing near Ari. Only the carpet and Ari’s presence suggested it was a throne room.

“Good day, guardians,” the man greeted. His voice suggested that he was younger than he seemed. The labor of farming might have aged his face a lot. “Please, come closer.”

The girls moved closer at his request. Really. Was he truly a cruel master to Yua?

“I have not heard of Basiliade, but I have heard of the place called Earth,” Ari said, “Like Arkhanta, Earth is home to humans, too, is it not?”

“Y-yes Sir,” Will answered.

“Humans, only humans can be Guardians of the Infinite Worlds, of Kandrakar.” The name of the tranquil place was uttered with bitterness and hate – Ari certainly had a different tone when he said that. “Did you know that?”

“No… Sir…” Will answered, intimidated by the sudden change of atmosphere.

“In that case, now you know. I am certain that you did not come from this land, and by mere deduction, I can tell that you are, indeed, the Guardians of the Infinite Worlds. The five of you, I assume, wearing this funny-looking ensemble.”

_‘Hey!’_ Irma complained, _‘I like our costumes!’_

“You were sent by Kandrakar,” Ari continued, “The girl behind you, the one in white, is not your teammate, but I can tell she, too, is an ally of Kandrakar.”

Will was getting even more and more nervous, the more Ari said Kandrakar’s name.

“I see. So Kandrakar hides behind you. What pathetic cowards.”

_‘Uh-oh,’_ Will cried out, _‘Taranee! Quick! Give me a good line to say!’_

“Your Lordship,” Taranee muttered out and paused. “A-ahem. Your Lordship, if I may speak. We would like to request you, to give negotiations another chance. We came as Kandrakar’s representatives, and we do not mean any harm.”

“Personally, perhaps, you harbor no ill feelings,” Ari said, “But, your presence here as representatives of Kandrakar does not sit well with me. I must ask you to leave.”

“Sir,” Will said, “Permission to speak. Um. We came here because we thought that, um, we might be able to reach a better conclusion to this, um, the problems at hand. Please, if we can do something for you…”

“My decision is rather final, Guardian. But, if I may take your offer, then I’d like for you to return to your master.” Ari turned around, and paced away. “I do not wish to be enemies with you, young girls. I’ve enough problems to deal with. Please. It’s for both our sakes.”

_‘Uh-oh. Come on guys, help me think!’_ Will pleaded. _‘This man is about to attack Kandrakar!’_

_‘This man, who’s talking rather nicely to us?’_ Irma asked, _‘Seriously?’_

Orube stepped forward, and bowed. “If I may speak, Sire.”

Ari stopped walking. A moment of silence followed, before he allowed her request. “…alright. Please.”

Orube continued, “We would like to offer a bit of our service to you, if that will allow you to reconsider.”

_‘What’s she doing?!’_ Cornelia grumbled.

_‘Wait! Let her speak!’_ Hay Lin said.

“I heard the people talk of the illness spreading in the land, and of a town called Ledona, the only one which is not under your rule. I would like to make a bargain with you, Sire, if you allow me.”

The girls panicked in their heads.

_‘When did she hear that?’_

_‘Did you hear it before?’_

_‘She has super hearing, remember?’_

_‘What bargain?!’_

Will tried to calm them down. _‘This can’t be harder than trying to defeat Phobos or Cedric, or trying to outwit Nerissa. Please, girls. Let’s give her a chance.’_

Fortunately, Ari agreed. “Alright. What is your bargain, girl?” He seemed amused. It eased Will’s nervousness, even a little.

“If we could help your people and solve the illness, and additionally, convince Ledona to recognize you as its leader,”Orube said, “Then I would like for you to reconsider your stand on the matter. Kandrakar’s request, I believe, was for you to free the banshee. The lives of all the Arkhantans, for one single life of a banshee.”

Will thought that seemed fair, considering how unwilling Ari was to yield, but obviously, someone else had a different idea in mind.

“Are you crazy?!” Cornelia yelled at Orube, “We can’t just solve the problems brought about by nature! And if we do succeed with this Ledona thing or whatever that town is, we’re going to leave one entire town to the hands of a _madman_!”

“Cornelia!”

Too late. None of the other guardians could convince the Earth Guardian to stop. Will stared at the Ari and she could not tear her gaze away. His laugh started off dry, before it devolved into a howl and grabbed everyone’s attention.

“Ha ha, a madman?” Ari repeated, “A _madman_? Me? Banshees are cruel creatures, Guardians. In fact, I’m doing Arkhanta a favor. I transformed the land, I gave the people livelihoods, and I saved this world. All because of the banshee. I turned an evil creature good, Guardians! If she were to keep her powers, she’d merely prank poor woodcutters who’d wander into their swamp by mistake!”

Will gulped. This was not good.

“And,” Ari continued, “I think that speaks volumes, Guardians. It may seem like you harbor no ill feelings towards me, but I think you hide your real feelings quite excellently, until a while ago. Girl,” Ari turned to Orube, “your companions are amusing, and I think, as all evidences suggest, you don’t fit in with this group. How pitiful.”

Will couldn’t summon any strength to refute it. How could she? It was true!

“However, I’m afraid, that because they are your allies, I will not consider your offer. Now, run along, go back to Kandrakar, and tell your Oracle that your journey is in vain, and that you’ve failed.”

Cornelia clicked her tongue. “No way! After all that trouble? Oh, no; I’m staying. If _they_ want, _they_ can go.”

_‘Not this again?!’_ Will braced herself for what might happen next.

“How impudent, girl.” Ari shook his head, his chuckle low.

“Oh, no, not me! Them! Right!” Cornelia pointed to her friends. “ _They_ are the ones who are impudent! Trusting a stranger to make a bargain with a madman who imprisons a defenseless woman in his house, and claims to be a super loving father to his son!”

Ari’s expression immediately changed, from shock, then to anger, then to rage.

“You… you don’t dare talk about my son!” He shouted, gesturing rather wildly about in the air with fists and palms. “What do you know?! What do you know about loss?! What do you know about pain?! You don’t understand, and you’d never understand! Because you choose not to understand! Your Oracle cannot do anything for my boy, because he chooses not to!”

Somehow, Ari’s appearance also changed. From a benevolent, wise leader, to a hideous monster inside the husk of a human. None of the girls could tell how or why, but there was suddenly something different about this man!

“He is deaf to my plea. He is blind to my son’s fate. He abandoned Maqi! He abandoned Arkhanta! His biases deem him unworthy of his position, and that is why, I will destroy him for all your sakes!”

The mood in the air shifted, and Hay Lin knew from the expressions on her comrades’ faces that they sensed it too – from its chilling tone, to a suffocating yet inescapable grip!

“All you see is the banshee being my captive!” Ari glanced at indefinite points in the ceiling, as he screamed. “Tell them, Yua! Tell them how I used your power for good! Tell them!”

A shrill cry came out of nowhere.

“Yes, Master!” The voice echoed in their ears. “I have never… thought. Of using my powers like this! But I… transformed the land! I gave the farmers… better soil. Calmer seas… for the fishermen. Fatter trees… for woodcutters. And for everyone… better weather!” The voice was weak. Perhaps forced. However, its pitch never died. “I have kept… my Master… and everyone safe!”

“Tell them, Yua! Tell them!” Ari demanded, “Tell them you’re happy in your position! That freedom is an illusion, and will make you sway towards evil once more!”

The voice came once more. “I… I am happy… here! You… cannot free me… Guardians. For I… am free. I am already… free. Of hatred… of pain… of evil…!”

“Lies!” Cornelia called out, “You’re only obeying your master!”

The banshee disagreed. “I am… not… just obeying him. These are my… real… feelings. Master, Master… they will… disrupt the peace!”

“You are right, Yua.” Ari cast a wide, horrifying grin towards the guardians. “Show them out!”

In an instant, Ari disappeared from the room, and the walls and windows faded out of sight. The room suddenly went darker and colder, spotting hues of bruise-purple and red, instead of faded purple and pink. Tar-like figures oozed up from the floor. They did not take human shape, but the figures had faces and arms as humans did, and their overall structure was reminiscent of a man’s shadow.

“Ragorlangs… little girls!” came the banshee’s shrill cry once more, “How do you like… my pets?”

The Ragorlangs gave howling shrieks, full but empty, loud but silent. It was unlike any other noise they’ve heard before, but one thing was clear – they were surrounded, and that meant they had to get out of here.

“Fire!”

“Air!”

Taranee and Hay Lin quickly shot beams of fire and air, but the Ragorlangs molded their shape to let their elements pass through.

“I don’t like them, alright,” Taranee answered the banshee’s question.

“They can change their shape to anything!” Hay Lin noted.

“Okay, so how about water?” Irma gulped, and tried the same as Taranee and Hay Lin, but with her own element. The Ragorlangs once again changed shape. “Okay, so that doesn’t work.”

Orube drew her sword. She swung it at one of the Ragorlangs, but moments after the monster was sliced in half, it reformed back to its original shape.

“Quintessence!” Will cried out, calling forth streaks of electricity. The Ragorlangs shriveled at the sight, but when Will directed the lightning towards them, their shapes molded once more to miss the attack. “Darn it! Nothing’s working!”

“Fools!” cried the banshee, “I think… it’s my turn… now! My pets… destroy them!”

The Ragorlangs moved closer, forcing the girls towards the center. None of the guardians knew what the monsters could do, but they would not take any chance of thinking that they could be easily defeated.

“So Orube,” Cornelia scoffed, “I bet you’ve heard of them. Got any genius ideas?”

“Cornelia!” Will scolded her, once more. “This isn’t the time! Get us out of here!”

“I would, but I don’t feel like helping you. You took _her_ side, remember?”

“Argh!”

“I hate to break the moment guys,” Hay Lin said, “But these beasties look like they’re going to eat us.”

True as the Air Guardian spoke! The Ragorlangs stretched their bodies to tower over the girls. The girls flew or dashed away. They wouldn’t let this hinder them.

Once again, the guardians, sans Cornelia, tried to use their elements against the Ragorlangs. Blasts of energy were thrown at the monsters, but once again, they reshaped themselves. As if finding confidence in their invulnerability, the Ragorlangs made their way to attack the girls. Orube dodged all of them, leaping about in the air as the creatures tried to tackle her. She swung her sword, but they quickly-re-formed.

“What will happen if we were caught?” Irma wondered out loud, as she tried to pry an approaching Ragorlang with water. She wasn’t taking any chances, though, and she quickly ran to the other side before it could… do something to her.

“I don’t want to know.” Hay Lin answered her, only successful in driving a few Ragorlangs towards her. “Yikes! They really, really want to be friends with us!”

“Try… _enemies!_ ”

Cornelia found herself faced with two Ragorlangs, and she summoned walls around her, using the floors. The monsters tried to pry into her barricade, but they found an opening at the top. Cornelia shrieked when they peeked at her, using rock formations from the floor to pry them away. The bodies of the monsters molded to dodge the rocks, but while they were busy with the rocks, Cornelia took the opportunity to fly away.

Seeing what her friend did, Hay Lin shouted, “Will flying help?”

The guardians tried the suggestion – to fly and keep being in the air. The Ragorlangs wouldn’t reach them. Taranee and Will held their hands out to Orube, and all six of them were now in the air.

The monsters, however, didn’t look like they were going to give up. With a loud howl, their forms retracted and launched themselves at the direction of the guardians. The girls dodged as best as they can, but the Ragorlangs were relentless. Where the girls went, the Ragorlangs did, following them immediately, wherever the guardians flew away from.

Soon, they were cornered. There were Ragorlangs in every direction; some of them attached to the walls and slowly sliding to the guardians’ position. No physical attack and no magical attack would get to the monsters.

Will couldn’t think. There was no way any of their attacks were going to be successful, not when the Ragorlangs could take any shape to evade everything. It was as if darkness was about to consume her and her friends. She remembered how it went, when she had little memory of herself and was alone in the darkness, right after Zenith mode. No. _No!_ If, if this was going to be like that…

“We have no choice,” she admitted, “We screwed this one up!” Ari wouldn’t talk, and Yua’s Ragorlangs were out to eat them. She took the Heart of Kandrakar into her hands, and opened a fold behind them, on the very corner of the walls. “Let’s get out of here!”

“Oh right! Look who’s a coward!” Cornelia mocked again. “ _EEP!_ ” But Irma shoved her into the fold first.

“Sorry about that, Orube,” the Water Guardian apologized to the warrior. “She’s just having a bad day. I’m sure she didn’t mean anything she said.” Irma went ahead towards the fold, followed by Taranee.

“Come on.” Hay Lin held her hand out to Orube; the warrior took the Air Guardian’s hand. They went through the fold, and Will went last.

As soon as the Keeper of the Heart was through, she made sure to close it. She turned around and her eyes fixed on the Oracle’s sad face. Behind him, Luba was shaking her head in disapproval.

“The evidence speaks for itself, Guardians,” the Oracle said, “You have failed.”

“I wonder why.” Cornelia glared at Orube, before turning around and flipping her hair, releasing another batch of fall leaves.

“We are disappointed in you. We trusted that you could talk with him, and be as civil as you can. However, it seems that your actions even provoked him!”

“Not my fault!”

“Cornelia,” Kadma called the current Earth Guardian, “I thought I could think better of you, but your attitude right now displeases me. I know that you place little trust in your new companion, but she is there to stay.”

“Kadma is right, Cornelia,” the Oracle added, “In fact, I believe that not so long ago, you behaved similarly in a battle against Nerissa.”

“But that’s different!” Cornelia reasoned, “You just took my boyfriend out of the team, just because you wanted it so! I’m beginning to believe Ari that you’re just being selfish and selective!”

“We sent Caleb back to Meridian because we do not mean to be selective. If we continue to use his services, it would seem that we favor Meridian a little too much.”

“Oh, but she,” Cornelia pointed to Orube, who seemed disheartened and confused, “can be in the team, and would make you look _un_ -selective?!”

Will decided that she was having no more of it, but her body acted faster than her mind could stop it. In a flash, her hand went and hit Cornelia’s cheek. The Earth Guardian was taken aback at the sudden action, and even the Council of Kandrakar was surprised, but, despite the guilt throbbing on her palm, Will knew she had to make a point.

“I… sorry for that, Cornelia, but, right now, I think that you’re being unhelpful. Instead of welcoming our new ally, you reject her. Instead of thanking her for whatever she could do for us, you even complained about her. And, instead of being one with us, you just… _ugh_! You just had to go and ruin it! She bravely took the reins when I couldn’t control the situation. She should be commended, not condemned!”

Will paused to take a brief look at Orube. The warrior’s expression seemed to calm, thank goodness. Will looked at Cornelia again.

“And you… I know you didn’t like it when they sent Caleb and Blunk back to Meridian, and I don’t exactly like the way they were dismissed, either. But, like it or not, they’re going to be there until the condition on Meridian stabilizes… or when they need our help once more. And, right now, Orube is doing what their jobs were once. It’s awkward, I know, but I was once the new girl before too, you know! So I know she’s confused right now, and the way you act, it just… it doesn’t help, okay?”

Cornelia cast her gaze on the ground. Will was sure that her friend felt so humiliated right now, but the Keeper of the Heart knew that humility must be learned to work as a team. Will then turned to the Oracle.

“I think that we need to go back to Arkhanta, and fix whatever can be fixed,” she proposed, “We can’t allow Ari to terrorize us, and I believe our actions made it even worse for you… and all of us.”

The Oracle thought for a moment and nodded. “So be it. But, you will have an additional task. Tibor, if you please.”

The mentioned elder revealed a key in his hands and gave it to Will.

“A key?!” Irma announced.

“It isn’t any key,” Tibor said, “It’s the key to Mrs. Rudolph’s house! She entrusted it to us shortly after Cedric’s attack on Earth. She expressed her desire to place her house at your disposal, but she trusts you to not take advantage of that place for your selfish reasons.”

“Alright!” Hay Lin cheered. “New hangout, plus a new secret hideaway? Awesome!”

“As of today,” the Oracle spoke, “That will be your new home, Orube.”

That shocked Cornelia out of her thoughts, and she gave a shriek. Taranee assisted her when the Earth Guardian almost fell over. Irma and Hay Lin shared looks. Well, what better way to know each other, than live closer to each other, right?

“You will take on the identity of Rebecca Rudolph,” instructed the Oracle, “And for everyone in Heatherfield, you will be the niece of a well-known and beloved teacher, Mrs. Rudolph. You will go there, under the guise of entering tertiary education, or in Earth terms, college.”

“Oh, she’s old enough to be in college,” Hay Lin whispered to Irma.

“Or at least, old enough to appear like she’s in college,” Irma joked, “Hey, for all we know, she’s ages older!”

“Like, um,” Hay Lin paused to gulp, “Miranda?”

“Ew, no! For all we know, Spidergirl could be younger!”

“ _Eeeeew._ ”

Shivers! Will was thankful that the two turned to the Oracle once more.

“Living in Earth will help you understand the guardians,” he explained, and turned to Will, “Just as it would help you, Guardians, to understand Orube. I hope that, by doing this, you will all learn to act like a team.”

Will looked at Orube, then at the elders. She could see the very intimidating face Luba made, but the guardian chose to ignore it. Focusing on failure was of no help to them.

-=-

Caleb was panicking. He would never forgive himself if he failed at this task. One piece of paper, that’s all he needed to hand over, then he could finally rest. But, the sun had gone down, and still, the Queen was nowhere in sight. The snowfall was getting heavier by the minute. Just how far was the town she was heading to?

“Bluuuuuuunk!” he whined, “Are you sure we’re heading to the right place?!”

“Yes! Blunk sure!” answered the passling, “Close! Very close!”

“Really?! That’s awesome, because I think our horse is getting really tired now!”

The stallion charged ahead, but all Caleb saw were trees covered in snow and darkened sky and lit villages in the horizon, just as he saw for the past few hours, save for when he had to stop to let the horse rest and drink some water. _Please oh please oh please…_ Caleb started to mentally list all the things he’d do, just so he wouldn’t have to do this again.

“I promise I won’t abandon my paperwork again! I promise I’d go easy on Aldarn next time and next and next, whatever sparring sessions we have! I promise I won’t be impatient, even if what I want to do right now is be with Cornelia!”

“Ooh, interesting!” the passling commented, “Who Caleb make promise with?”

“Myself! Um, what else, I promise I’ll check the documents. I promise I’ll work harder on the bandits case. I promise I’ll be patient, until—huh?! It’s Vathek!”

The sight of the blue giant came in view. He was on a horse, and it seemed like the Queen and her escorts were resting by a river that they thawed out.

“Vathek!” Caleb called, stopping his white stallion, and jumping off towards his friend. “Vathek! Haah… Vathek!”

The blue giant turned, wearing a wide smile. “Caleb!” he greeted, holding Caleb by the shoulders to stop the commander from crashing into him. “What brings you here? Shouldn’t you be at the palace?”

“Parcel! I mean, uh. Treaty! Document!” Caleb held up his pouch. “Mix up! Aldarn sparring, and then Father saw, had to rush here, Blunk, horse, river, hours… man, I don’t know where to start!”

“Caleb!” a girl’s voice called out. Oh, the Queen! She called him over to the carriage window. Caleb had to drag his feet to get there.

“For you, Your Majesty,” he said, handing the pouch over. Elyon took it and opened it. She took the envelope, and looked inside. She gasped.

“The treaty?!” The Queen picked up another envelope, assumingly the documents she took with her, and examined the contents of that other envelope. “Oh my gosh, you saved me! I didn’t know—how did—where? I didn’t know I was missing a page, really! Thank you, Caleb!”

“It wasn’t me, your Majesty.” Caleb’s tone shifted from excited and relieved, to sad and disappointed. “My father was the one who found that mixed up with the reports on my table. I… I abandoned my duty, because I was, being kind of selfish, and impatient. I don’t think I deserve to be the commander of your army.”

“No, Caleb.” Elyon smiled. “The fact that you ran all the way here just to give this to me, proves that you’re just the man for the job. You have your shortcomings and your mistakes, I know, but I know you just care for Cornelia and the others, just as you care for me and Meridian. You weren’t afraid to admit your mistake, and to correct it. I hope that you learn from it, and make use of this experience to get better.”

Caleb felt relief once more. “I will! Thank you, your Majesty!” He dropped to the snow and promptly fell asleep. Blunk went over to wake ‘Friend Caleb’ up, to no avail.

“Um, Caleb?” Elyon called, “You okay?”

Vathek and the other soldiers laughed. “I think he’s just fine,” Vathek said, “He just needs some rest, that’s all.”

-=-

The key twisted, and the door was opened.

“Go on, Orube, make yourself at home,” Will said to her companion, urging the warrior inside. Behind them, Matt followed. It was good that he was there. Cornelia had quickly stomped away, Taranee had some commitments with her family tonight, and Irma wanted to be home early to get her beauty sleep (for Sylla, again). Hay Lin had accompanied them earlier, but a sudden phone call from Yan Lin made her suddenly unavailable halfway through. Grandmother problems, she said.

Will took another look at Orube. The large ears, the tail, the stripes down her back… Will instructed Matt to use a glamour on her, but she didn’t appear any more human to Will. But, that would make Orube appear very human to all other humans. That also made it easier for them – that was, Will, Orube, and Hay Lin before Yan Lin’s call – to go to an apparel store and buy a few outfits for her. It just happened that majority of Orube’s wardrobe were crop tops despite the cold weather, but it came off a surprise to Will. The other girl, after all, wasn’t quite a girl anymore, and more like a woman. Will had to bite her insecurity down, for the sake of Kandrakar.

It was also a bit of a surprise to Will when Orube removed her head ribbon, or headband, whatever. Her hair fell to her shoulders, and it look so darned soft. She also chose to wear a coat, a red sweater, a denim skirt, stockings, and boots – she looked so beautiful in her chosen outfit. And she had stripes! They looked like tattoos. Would Matt suddenly—

“Um, do you live in places such as these, as well, Miss Will?” Orube asked, calling Will back to Earth. Orube was so respectful – she’d called them with titles and insisted on it. Will smiled.

“More or less!” She shrugged, placing the bags of clothes down on the floor.

“It’s really different.”

“I’d imagine.” Matt walked towards the fridge – since when had they made it to the kitchen? “Bet you never saw a fridge before either.” He opened the refrigerator door, and the huge appliance let out short streams of cold air.

“Fridge,” Orube repeated, perhaps to familiarize herself with the word, “So this is called a fridge?” She walked towards it and touched the edges. “It’s cold.”

“Yeah, to help us preserve food. We store food here.”

“But, it’s… empty?”

Matt shared a look with Will as he closed the fridge. _‘Help me.’_ Will could tell from his face. She giggled, and said, “Nobody uses this place, so naturally, there would be no food here. But, you could easily fill it up. We can stop by the grocery and do some shopping…”

“Grocery? Shopping?” Orube looked at her and repeated the unfamiliar words again. “So, is the grocery a shop?”

“Kind of, for food, that is! Lots of food!”

“If that’s so, can we do that now? I feel hungry.”

Will and Matt shared a look again. No, grocery shopping when hungry made people even hungrier. “Um, could you excuse us for a while?” Will asked with a nervous grin.

“Sure.” Orube shrugged and turned to explore the cupboards (also very empty). Will took the chance to set Matt aside and whisper to him. Hopefully, Orube wouldn’t hear.

“Let’s just offer her dinner,” Will suggested, and took her wallet out. “We can’t leave her with an empty stomach! Besides, she’s our guest!”

Matt agreed, “You’re right. And, let’s just order extra for tomorrow. We’ll figure something out.” He took his own wallet out. Hopefully, their combined spares would be good for pizza. A few bills and a few coins – yes, that would do the trick. They went back in the kitchen, where Orube was trying to figure out the oven.

“Here, Orube!” Will said, presenting the money, “We don’t have much, but we hope that—”

Before Will could react fast enough, Orube grabbed hold of one of the bills and took a small bite out of it. Matt and Will watched in utter horror and disbelief as the Basiliadean forced herself to chew and swallow.

“This doesn’t taste good,” Orube said with a frown, placing the bill on the countertop, “I think I’ll eat the rest later.”

Matt rushed about to find the phone and place an order for pizza, while Will lead the very confused Orube out to sit on the couch and lecture her on paper currency. This task, this additional task of theirs, was _not_ going to be an easy task…

Meanwhile, unknown to all of them, across the street, a man with glasses hid in the shadows, using what light he can to write details on his notebook…


	3. And I Really, Really Hate It

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Previously on The Crises in Three Worlds...
> 
> In Meridian, bandits are trying to shake up the land. Caleb tries to vent by taking it out on sparring, but he neglects his duties. He catches up to Elyon for a page of a treaty.
> 
> Meanwhile, Kandrakar reveals Ari's story and tasks the guardians and Orube to appeal the release of his banshee, Yua. Negotiations in Arkhanta don't go as planned, and they are chased away by Yua's Ragorlangs. Cornelia professes disdain towards Orube. Will slaps Cornelia.
> 
> The Oracle sends Orube to Heatherfield to help her understand the guardians more. Little did they know that someone was spying on them.

For Caleb, the new day should be better than the last.

Today, there was no more room for any blunders. He would put trust in Cornelia and the other guardians. They would handle their affairs in the Infinite Worlds; he would handle the ones in Meridian, until things stabilize here. He would make Queen Elyon proud of his work, he would not let his father down, and most of all, Caleb swore he would make sure Meridian would be peaceful.

Even if he felt a little disappointed at not having Cornelia by his side.

After receiving his father’s scolding, he set his mind on looking closely at the bandits case. New reports came in, mostly about Count Haseldorf’s bandits getting caught; the others were new cases of petty raids. Some of these raids were already foiled, thanks to the strategic placing of Sandpit and Gargoyle in some relatively quiet villages and Aldarn’s men being quick to act. Drake and Raythor were in charge of the castle perimeters for this round, while Vathek and their party were due to return with the Queen tonight, at best case. Tynar was at the Prison of Infinite City – so far, Phobos or any of his minions hadn’t made new attempts at a jail break. Alborn and Miriadel, their schedules freed up due to to Elyon’s diplomatic trip, busied themselves with attempting to spy around the towns. Caleb sent Blunk to the trading routes, to see if the passling could pick up any important news.

So far, the day looked bright.

Well, not counting the mess in his office, that is. Pieces of paper were falling to the floor; stacks of which remain unorganized on his table, on the shelves, and on the floor, as well. If this kept up, it would soon be impossible to walk around. Oh well. He’d get to them soon.

Then, one of his men, or rather, one of Tynar’s men came into his office.

“Here is last night’s report, Sir,” the soldier said, handing over the document, “There are no suspicious movements, but as for suspicious conversations, we’d like to believe there isn’t any, but…”

Caleb’s eyes glanced over the report, and a little detail caught his eye. ‘Intense arguments between prisoners Lord Cedric and Miranda,’ it said.

Why would they be arguing again? Oh, right. Lovers’ quarrel. Or post-break-up quarrel. Caleb began to laugh at the thought, and he knew he’d confused Tynar’s subordinate. Man. Caleb told himself that his job was so boring. He forgot the small things that came with it, namely enjoying the sight and knowledge of the tyrant Phobos being behind bars and the delicious rumors (and non-rumors) that passed around the castle.

“I-is there something wrong, Sir?” asked the soldier. Caleb pulled himself back on Meridian.

“No.” He tried to stifle his laughter, but in vain. “None at all.”

Then, an idea passed through Caleb’s mind. Count Haseldorf was one of Phobos’ supporters; maybe Phobos or any of his underlings might know something about the bandits. Anything, really. Like old underground networks, especially the ones among the rich, back when Phobos was still on the throne. Caleb stopped laughing, but the grin he wore still reached from ear to ear. “No, actually… I’ll go see what the fuss is all about.”

Today seemed to be a good day!

-=-

On the other side of the universe, Caleb’s ladylove felt the exact opposite that he did. Cornelia’s day was _not_ good.

Will thought it would be for the best if they didn't go back to Arkhanta until they all made up, so today was a no-go. How cowardly! Sure, Ari was crazy, maybe a little unpredictable, but they only had to fool him into releasing the banshee. Or, maybe Cornelia could use her powers of Earth to find the banshee herself, free the woman, and… there! Banshee’s free, Oracle’s satisfied, then maybe that new girl Orube could go home now.

Really. What was so difficult about releasing a captured woman? The bindings on her wrists, as the visions suggested, were magical. So what? Cornelia dealt with other magical entrapments before! Nerissa was even a better foe than this, and even if he was petty and childish, dealing with Phobos seemed like a better idea than dealing with some lunatic who held a woman hostage, and said woman who seemed like she’s changed her mind about being captured.

“Oh look little girls, Ragor- _lames_! Ooooh, you’re so scared now.” Cornelia mocked Yua’s shrieks, posing dramatically on the street. Let everyone see her; her so-called friends had already abandoned her. What could be even sadder than that?

“Oh, no, Cornelia, nothing’s working! Get us out of here, ‘coz we’re dumb enough to trust our new so-called friend.” This time, she was mocking her friends, but most especially, Will. If this was the result of her dad’s upcoming marriage and possibly her mom’s too, then maybe they shouldn’t be remarrying.

“Cornelia, you’re a disappointment. You’re not helping. You only wanna be with Caleb. What do you know about boys anyway? Look at me, I have Mr. Sylla!” Now, she was mocking Kadma, Will, and Irma at once. Seriously. Why did this have to be about her relationship with Caleb? That wasn’t the issue. The point was that, he was a better companion, someone they knew and trusted. Orube wouldn’t even talk! What was her problem?! And what’s Irma’s problem, by the way? What did she see in that teacher? That was disgusting!

Cornelia stopped before a clothes store and gazed at her reflection. There were evil bags under her eyes – that couldn’t be true! She wiped the mirror to confirm – oh, no! Her complexion seemed very pale… gosh darn it, was that a pimple right there? Ew! Guardian duties destroyed her beauty sleep, on top of her skin being a little more sensitive to the winter weather. How did Taranee keep her straight A’s, again? And how was it that Will managed to stay sane? How about Hay Lin, who had shifts at her family business? Irma’s got it lucky, but that was because her body seemed to obey her. Courtesy of being the Water Guardian and the human body being mostly water, probably.

Ugh! Cornelia struck a few more poses before the window. If only she didn’t have guardian duties, she’d probably attempt to go back to figure skating, and what, land the world’s first quadruple axel in competition? Now _that_ was groundbreaking. It would mean that she’d go back to a strict schedule and a stricter diet, to keep her body in shape for her performances. Maybe it would then keep Caleb next to her.

Or actually… not him. He had to be in board with Kandrakar’s plan for him. He hadn’t visited her, even if he did say that he didn’t like how things were! Did he even know that Valentine’s was coming up soon? No, of course not. He was an idiot to Earth holidays, and to Earth girl’s feelings. Hmph! Maybe she’d dump him for good now. How about… Peter! Peter Lancelot Cook, Taranee’s brother! He was a good choice; a nice guy overall, and he himself kept straight A’s like Taranee. And, in addition, he was a surfer, a sure hunk. Also, his kiss made her feel a little more like a woman rather than a girl. Even if it was accidental, it felt kind of nice. Different. Hmmm… not a bad idea. Not bad at all.

As for Taranee… Cornelia decided she’d deal with her later. Hmph. But, as for Kandrakar, Will, Irma, Hay Lin, and Caleb…

“ _This_ isn’t worth it,” she said to her reflection in the mirror, flipping her hair about, “ _This_ isn’t worth… _you_.”

“This is gonna be so worth it!”

Cornelia turned around. Two girls her age were gushing over something. Curious, she approached them.

“Excuse me,” she said, “But what _is_ worth it?”

The taller girl turned to her with a flyer in hand. “Modelling! Didn’t you hear? VistaGirls is looking for new models!”

Cornelia took the flyer and examined it. “Bring biodata and headshots, then wait for a call,” she read, then looked up to the girls with a frown. “Why should I just wait?”

“Oh, duh, don’t you know?” the shorter girl said, “That’s how it is! The competition’s like, so tough, very, very tough! And when you get in, the competition’s so, so far from over! There’s like, so many girls—”

“So many blonde girls like you, her, and I!” added the taller girl.

“Like Careen said! Don’t ever think anybody there is your friend.”

Perfect. Just perfect for her mood. If guardianship felt similarly as with modelling, then why wouldn’t she try for it? “That’s great.” Cornelia nodded, “I think it’s worth a shot. I’m taking this flyer; do you girls mind?”

The two shrugged.

“Nah. Why not?” Careen smirked. “I’d be glad to compete with someone like you, instead of Cleo here…”

“ _HEY!_ ”

“Thanks!”

Cornelia walked away, leaving the two others to bicker. Modelling, huh. That’s a better way to make use of her time. Modelling. Maybe… maybe if she could prove herself an excellent model while proving herself a capable guardian, maybe, maybe Kandrakar can let her visit Caleb, and then they could be together again!

Quite the excellent plan. Good work, Cornelia!

-=-

Will grumbled when Cornelia refused to show up at the Silver Dragon, but then again, her presence wasn’t exactly necessary. The Keeper of the Heart decided that a good way to introduce Orube to the human ways, was to let her work at the Lins’ restaurant for a while. Both Yan Lin and Meera Lin were ecstatic. But, putting the warrior out front wasn’t such a good idea, not when she was still confused by the language.

Today, she would only help the Lins prepare food. And boy, did she deliver.

“Orube,” Meera Lin called, “Two carrots.”

“Two carrots,” the warrior repeated, swiftly chopping up two units of the orange vegetable.

“Could you help me with the _dimsum_?” Yan Lin requested.

“ _Dimsum_.” Orube quickly washed her hands, and assisted Yan Lin in preparing the dumplings. The warrior’s folds were very precise and calculated, just as the ancient recipe called for it, and the dumplings she made had the perfect amount of meat in it. In a few minutes, all the dumplings were ready to be steamed.

“Sorry to bother, but we need more blocks of pork here!” Joan Lin apologized.

“Pork… blocks of pork…” Orube washed her hands once more and proceeded with preparing the chopping block and the knife. “Where’s the pork…?”

Meera Lin pointed to the cooler. “Right there in the cooler, dear. The one in the yellow bag.”

“Cooler… yellow bag.” Orube did as Meera Lin told, and effortlessly cut the raw meat into many even-sized pieces.

Meanwhile, Chen Lin, Hay Lin, Will, Irma, Taranee, and Matt would frequently stop to look at the kitchen. For some reason or another, the energy among the women also attracted a lot of customers. Both Joan Lin and Chen Lin were happy that they had extra hands today, as opposed to being inconvenienced every time the teens would meet up simply to hang out in the basement.

“I’ve never seen such a perfect _xiao long bao_ in my life,” Chen Lin said, looking up from the cash register, “The number of folds, the size of the folds, the meat, even the size of the meat and the amount of soup… where do you keep finding new members of our restaurant, mother? And this one is even more excellent! Older than my girl and her friends, but still, very excellent!”

“Not now, my son,” Yan Lin barked, “I see somebody asking for the bill. Now, run along.”

“So…” Taranee turned to Will. “How exactly is this helping Orube?”

“She ate a bill, Taranee, one green money bill amounting to significant currency,” Will emphasized, shoulders trembling from the memory, “That I took out of my pocket, my savings, and my future.”

“Your future?”

“A-anyway. If she learns how to cook, and if she learns the basic workflow in an Earth job, then we can take her out to the grocery or to a restaurant.”

“Hm, makes sense. Plus, if she gets paid, then we won’t have to worry about her so much. How did you convince her to work here, though?”

“Well, since she’s a warrior, and you told me in our mental link to ‘think warrior, think simple’… I kind of, um, told her that the kitchen is a battlefield in itself.”

Irma snickered. “In that case, then life is a constant battlefield too.”

“As for future jobs,” Matt supposed, “Do you think she’ll work well at Grandpa’s?”

“The pet store, huh…” Taranee thought for a moment. “That could work; I don’t see why not. Exposing her to Earth fauna is not a bad idea. Now that reminds me. Are you sure that the glamour is working on her? Because I can see her as her real self, with huge ears, that swishy tail, and the stri… wait, Hay Lin, is that even okay with your folks?”

“We oriented her on hygiene already,” Hay Lin assured, “My grandma made sure of it.” The Chinese girl went quiet for a moment. “I mean, my grandmas. Oops! I’m still not used to saying I have two grandmas instead of one, hee-hee! But, then again, a typical Chinese family has a lot more than what we do!”

“How many are we talking about, exactly?” Matt asked.

“Cousins of the 10th degree, I’ve heard. Like, a whole village.”

“Woah!”

“Kind of makes me glad I just have my parents and my grandma here…” Hay Lin paused to cover her mouth at her mistake. “Grandmas.”

“I hope they aren’t causing any trouble.” Will smiled. “Yan Lin was a bit grumpy at school the other day, remember?”

Hay Lin tried to smile back. “Well… not really… well, we’ll figure things out. I’m sure of it.”

“I hope you do.”

“Kids! Table 6 and Table 10, please!” Chen Lin called out, “Please reduce your chattering.”

“Sorry, Mr. Lin!” Hay Lin’s friends chorused, and they went back to work.

“So does the glamour work, or not?” Taranee asked Matt as she delivered dirty dishes to him.

“Works on others, not on us,” he replied, “Or on Yan Lin, or Meera Lin. That way, I don’t need to use that much energy.”

Taranee shrugged and went back to collect more dirty plates. Meanwhile, Irma went up to Hay Lin, and whispered, “If I pulled Orube’s tail, will she get angry at me?”

Hay Lin opened her mouth enthusiastically, but she paused and grimaced. “…can you not?”

Irma shrugged. “Nah.”

The Water Guardian was about to head into the kitchen, but a familiar face walking in caught her eye. “M-M-Mr. Sylla!” she exclaimed, almost dropping the notebook from her hands. Her teacher smiled back at her, and Irma’s heart leapt about.

She tore the current open page off the notebook and thrust the torn sheet into Hay Lin’s hands. She had to get Sylla’s order; no, she had to seat him, recommend him some dishes, and deliver his order to him. Irma quickly headed towards her teacher, until she noticed the bald man who walked beside him.

“M-Mr. Sylla?” she nervously greeted her teacher, who gave her a smile, “Um, I mean, welcome to the Silver Dragon!”

“Hello, Irma,” Sylla greeted back, “By the way, this is Theodore Riddle, one of my business acquaintances. Mr. Riddle, this is Irma Lair, one of my best students, if not the best already.”

Sylla gestured to the man next to him. Riddle didn’t seem unfriendly, but the large bags under his eyes made him a little intimidating. Irma had to force herself to say hello, but Riddle only chuckled.

“It’s the eyebags, isn’t it?” he joked, “Computer programming is a very tough job. Eats your soul and breaks your heart. But, if you make it through, you’ll make it big. High-paying, on-demand career. Who knows? You might even work with Microsoft or Apple. I have IBM on my resume!”

At the mention of the company names, Irma began to feel a little better. Must be the stranger effect. Oh, well. Right! She had to seat them.

“Err, please. Mr. Sylla, Mr. Riddle. This way.” Irma gestured to an empty table, and placed the menu in front of the seats. “It’s a cold winter day, so of course, soup is recommended. I personally dig, I mean, personally suggest the braised beef noodle soup.”

“Indeed,” Riddle agreed, “I’d like that soup.”

“You may also want the _xiao long bao_. It’s exceptionally perfect today. Um, it’s a kind of dumpling with meat or other foodstuffs, like, um, mushroom and shrimp. Eating it is a little special because it has some soup in it, and it would make for a good appetizer while we prepare the noodles and stuff.” Oh thank Hay Lin for teaching her all these stuff! It wasn’t all that useless!

“I’m intrigued,” Sylla complimented, “Then I’d like a serving of that, too.”

Riddle said it in a low voice as Irma scribbled on her notebook, but she heard it nonetheless: “Your student is indeed very smart.”

Irma felt the heat spread through her chest and her head. Bonus points! Even Mr. Sylla’s associate recognized her! No, no, no time to get distracted. She had to serve their orders, and fast.

-=-

Through the halls, a lone servant wandered about, busy with the task in her head. Two guards stood before a door, tense in their stance and trying their best to keep awake. In the kitchen, the maids greeted the king as he made way to prepare his own meal, upon his insistence.

Peaceful.

The room was big enough, small enough. There was ample space to move around and breathe, but not too big to make oneself feel so small. The toys were neatly stacked in their boxes. Surely, they wouldn’t be stepped on that way. Colored chalk sticks lined up on the table, next to the many sheets of paper. The images the boy drew were lovely – all were similar renditions of a very bright sun shining over the Scarlet Citadel. All the previous drawings were discarded. Maybe there had something wrong with them, maybe the color, maybe the shape of the figures.

The nurse who stayed with the boy wouldn’t figure that out, but that was none of her business. She didn’t like the boy, and the boy didn’t exactly like her either. She never spoke of her own feelings, only did whatever was necessary, whatever Daddy told her. She was a creepy, brooding figure with glazed eyes.

Maqi hated her in a way. Her silence bothered him so much. But, as long as she didn’t bother him too much, he was fine with that.

He glanced outside, then at his artwork, then at the nurse, then back outside. Something was supposed to happen here. Soon. He’d calculated it in his head.

_DING! DING! DING!_

The bell tolled. Maqi smiled. Lunch time. It was the bell for lunch time. He put his chalk sticks back in their box and placed the box next to the clean sheets of paper. He dusted his hands off – oh, he needed to wash them beforehand. Eating with dirty hands was a no-no! Waving his hands about to draw attention to them, he looked at the nurse.

This gesture, the nurse understood. She led him to the washroom to clean his hands of chalk dust. Once Maqi felt clean enough, he waved his hands again. His hands were clean now, look! The nurse took him to the dining hall, where Daddy waited.

Maqi looked at the utensils before him – big spoon on the top, small spoon on the furthest right and an equally small fork next to the small spoon, a bread knife on the left, plate in the middle. The nurse helped him with a napkin on his lap – she sat to his immediate left. He faced Daddy, whose utensils were arranged the same way. Hooray, everybody’s the same! The nurse would eat later – it’s supposed to be mealtime only for him and Daddy, a bonding moment between them. Everything was in order now.

“Hello Maqi,” Daddy greeted.

“…hullo.” Maqi briefly glanced at Daddy – not too much; staring at someone’s eyes gave him this eerie feeling. Maqi felt happy that he greeted back, as Daddy wanted. They could eat now.

To Ari, though, it felt so disappointing. He greeted his son; Maqi greeted back. That was certainly a development, but still. Why couldn’t he say anything more? Why didn’t Maqi look at him? Was his little boy unhappy to see his own father? Ari remembered what the physicians once said.

‘He’s still young. Give him some time!’

‘Don’t worry too much. He’s going to talk soon.’

‘He’s just shy. He’ll talk to you when he gets braver.’

Ari could recall the only moments Maqi did initiate a conversation.

‘Let go!’

‘Don’t want it.’

‘Hate it!’

Why wasn’t Maqi happy with such a luxurious life? Why wouldn’t Maqi look at him and smile?

Ari’s thoughts floated back to Kandrakar. Kandrakar! Why did they send such young girls to convince him to… do the impossible? He wasn’t doing anything wrong here. For what else would he use a banshee’s power? He had no desire for wealth like this, but her powers forced him to wish for it. It was only to help him reason with the human healers of his land… but to no avail. No wise man, no scholar, no power could ever make his son’s disease go away.

And those girls. They should’ve known better. They should’ve asked the Oracle to reconsider, instead. Ari promised himself. If a being as great as an Oracle could heal his son, he’d go back to his old life. He’d toil the farmlands once more. He’d crawl through mud and brave through floods. He could provide for everything else, to be honest. He had the strength to support himself and his son, really, and that was how they used to live, anyway. He’d let go of the banshee.

No. Why would he let go of such a dangerous creature? She’d desire revenge on him. She’d destroy him, take away all that he wished for, and whisk his son away. No. No! Ari would never want that to happen! Ari would never let that happen! Not in the hands of a creature so cruel and so powerful! The boy was still so young and so naïve and knew nothing of the world outside him! He’d… he’d surely… a tragedy…

_PING PING PING PING!_

His son’s actions brought him back to earth. Maqi tapped his plate again and again. Ari remembered that he hadn’t even put any food on his own plate. He sighed. The incident from the other day was getting to him. It was mealtime, wasn’t it? He was supposed to eat and enjoy food with his son. Ugh. He hoped it tasted fine. He was too distracted today!

“Yes. Thank you,” Ari said, and helped himself to the chicken tenders. He’d think about his problems again later. But for now, he was going to treasure these precious moments with his son.

-=-

Caleb had to assure himself he wasn’t going down there to find out what was going on with, pfft, Cedric and Miranda. No. Of course, not. No! Caleb was going to the Prison of Infinite City to get information from Phobos, if the damned tyrant would be in the mood to open his mouth and babble a little. That’s it. To get information from Phobos (if he felt like giving information). Nothing more, nothing less.

“Phobos… Haseldorf… bandits…” Caleb murmured, “Need information… little tip…”

He wasn’t there to pick up some juicy news from two pathetic enemies who attempted to take over the whole universe with a half-baked plan. No. Of course, not. Caleb was a gentleman. Why would such petty rumors be important? Ha, ha. It’s not like they’re going to escape again, and one of them would be wandering off in complete annoyance.

“I should’ve known your plan was going to fail! After all, it was _you_ who made it all up!”

“Why, you agreed to it! And may I remind you I asked _your_ opinion on it?”

But, Caleb couldn’t help it. He heard the argument even when he was still at the entrance, and it was funny, so he had to laugh. It confused Tynar’s subordinate, but Caleb tried his best to look and act as proper as he can.

“So it’s _my_ fault we’re here? You’re blaming a lady for your misfortunes now?”

“I’m not blaming a lady. I’m blaming _you_!”

“So I’m not a lady. Hmph! Hey, everybody, you heard that? Lord Cedric is absolute scum and bane of all women!”

“And you’re a little girl who wants her Mommy! And you know what? I bet your dearest Mommy doesn’t even want _you_ back!”

Caleb tried to stifle his laughter. Cornelia may want to hear about that one. No, no. This isn’t what Queen Elyon’s Commander of Arms was here for. Caleb had to calm himself. Bandits. He had to ask about the bandits.

The prisoners didn’t give him much attention as he entered. Probably because of the amusing, ahem, because of the loud banter between the shapeshifter lovers. Or ex-lovers. It seemed that way now. Hah. Ha, ha.

“It was funny at first,” Tynar told him as Caleb approached the deck, “But trust me, you don’t like being here all day.”

“A-and Count Haseldorf?” asked Caleb, “How’s his first day?”

“He refused all his meals until breakfast this morning. But Caleb, what are you doing here? You aren’t here to, err, listen to _that_ , are you?”

“O-of course, not!” Never! Come on, Tynar! Be a little more creative!

However, as Caleb tried to explain the purpose of his visit, the shapeshifters’ voices became louder.

“You’re an old man!”

“And you’re just a little girl!”

“But I’m already smarter than someone like you, who spends his days buried in a pile of books in a rotten library!”

“Who says you’re smarter?! You don’t even have manners!”

Tynar only understood something about bandits and was beginning to look very distressed, as did his men. Caleb couldn’t take the noise, took the cue, and screamed, “ _SHUT! **UUUUUUUUUUUUUUP!**_ ”

Caleb’s voice echoed in the prison, shook to silence by his scream. He counted to three, before resuming. “As I was saying, Tynar, I’m here to get information about the bandits. I was hoping I could, well… um…” Now, explaining that he had to attempt asking Phobos for help (again, like _that_ time) wasn’t easy.

“Oh, rebel leader! Yoo-hoo! Prince Phobos calling for Stupid Elyon’s Stupid Commander! Are you deaf?!”

Oh. But, getting Phobos’ attention was very easy. What now? Caleb looked at the fallen prince. “What?”

“I said, instead of being here, why don’t you make yourself useful to your beloved immature Queen brat, and oh, I don’t know, try to find the not-so-noble members of my court?” Huh? Caleb was sure he didn’t hear that one. Then again, it was impossible to hear oneself over the arguing voices of Cedric and Miranda.

“Haseldorf looks mighty fine in his cell over there. How about Marquise Edna? Ludmoore the Alchemist? Vaal the Useless?” Now, the prince was just blabbering. Great. Why did Caleb think this was—

“Oh, having Vaal here is a pleasure. He babbles a lot, knows a little about anything and everything. Don’t mind his looks. He’s so stunted and green, and he looks like mold, but despite that, he hears a lot of things, things which I don’t even concern myself with.” No, this was a good idea. Vaal. Vaal the Useless. Someone who knows about anything and everything, or at least, a little bit of many things around the kingdom. He should be able to get wind of who’s behind the bandits.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, again,” Caleb said, “But that’s a good plan, and I agree to it.”

Tynar didn’t seem to disagree with it either. He was about to voice out something, but the thought seemed to die as soon as he met eyes with the commander. Caleb made his way out. Good job, Commander!

As the former rebel leader walked away, the whispers became a little more audible.

“Wot’s zat all ‘bout?” Frost questioned his former master, “Why didya tell ‘im?”

Phobos gave a chuckle. “Oh, you question my ingenious plan. I simply gave the rebel leader something to busy himself with. What good will it bring him? Vaal may have intentions of his own, but he’s no fool to give me away!”

“And Ludmoore?” asked Miranda, “You said Ludmoore, right? As in, Johnny Ludmoore?”

“Miranda, everybody here knows Ludmoore.”

“I wonder what happened to him. He was such a gentleman, unlike _somebody_ I know.”

Cedric groaned from his cell.

“Oh, how am I supposed to know?” Phobos chuckled. “He suddenly disappeared.”

“That’s such a mystery, isn’t it?” Miranda wondered, “I thought he liked being here. Oh, don’t tell me. Did you obliterate him to oblivion? Or did you ask Cedric to kill him and eat the evidence away?”

Cedric commented from his cell, “How pathetic. This is a waste of time.”

Miranda whipped her head towards his direction. “No, _you_ are a waste of time!”

Oh! This was _so_ on.

-=-

This. This was not on.

Elyon found herself in a more distant part of Meridian, begging a town elder and his council to sign a treaty, only to be turned away.

“I’m the Queen!” she reasoned.

“Well _we_ are the rulers of this land, not some… fair skinned brat whose ears are still wet!”

“ _What?!_ ”

Everyone stood to leave the table. Elyon almost stumbled off her chair and chased after them. She begged, “Please! You have to sign this treaty! If you don’t, you’ll be in danger!”

The eldest turned to look at her. “Who needs something like that? Besides, none of these things you said even makes sense!”

The point was that the neighboring townsmen had complained of this one being greedy about their territory lately, and the treaty would assure that both would get an equal amount of land. Elyon was sure she explained that pretty well and in the simplest words she could use.

“Run along, little girl,” another one of the councilmen said, “Don’t waste our time with this!”

“But—!”

The commonsfolk cleared the area. Elyon’s entourage nervously shifted.

“…they’re kinda difficult, aren’t they?” she told them, trying to smile, “I gotta try again.”

“I believe so, your Majesty.” Vathek mirrored her grin. “It’s for everyone’s sake. Perhaps, perhaps they were not ready.”

“Maybe…”

At the least, they were offered kind accommodations.

Elyon marched up to their temporary camp. It was next to a quaint little house on the farther edge of the smaller town, not so far from the meeting point. She liked it. A forest lay nearby, and earlier, huntsmen entered its depths with their hounds for what animal they could hunt in the dead of winter. The townsfolk relied on it for their livelihoods and especially right now that food was scarce; she couldn’t let it go to the bigger town.

“Welcome back, your Grace.”

Her entourage arrived to see their host chopping wood with his teenaged child.

“Mr. Caesar.” Elyon sighed. “Thank you very much for everything.”

He turned to look at her, his beautiful blue eyes gentle and ever kind. “You seem a little down. Is something wrong with the treaty?”

“Well… I suppose it’s not a commoner’s place to know about it.”

“Oh? How so?”

“It’s… a Queen’s thing, you know.”

“Mmm…”

Caesar anchored his axe against the ground. “Keti, please take these inside.” He gestured to the logs, before turning towards Elyon again. “But I suppose a Queen is also simply a person… a young woman, ready to help her citizens, but lost on how to, perhaps?”

Elyon’s face reddened in embarrassment. “H-how would you know?”

“I don’t see you out the palace much, nor do I hear of it.”

She bit the insides of her cheek. “Y-yeah. I’m working on that.”

“That’s good to hear. Would you like to have a drink?”

“…sure. I’d like that. Please.”

Caesar lead her inside his house. Elyon liked this man. He welcomed them to his hometown and helped them set up camp. He even let her borrow his bed for the night. Lying to him seemed unfair.

But she couldn’t just tell him she was actually in and out of the palace, into her old house in Heatherfield and up to her last days of school with her friends, then sealed inside a magical jewel that siphoned her powers and gave it to an evil guardian, who attempted to claim the universe for her own.

“Here you go, your Grace.” Caesar handed her a warm mug of sweet-smelling herbal tea – at least, that’s what she thought it was. It would be perfect for the weather. “For the troubled Queen’s heart.”

“Thank you.”

He sat across her as she sipped from it. “Well?”

“It’s nice.” It was unlike anything she drank before, and it gave her a sense of calm and home.

“The Queen liked it, Keti.” Caesar looked at his child. Keti was probably no older than Elyon herself; they were short and rather thin. “Please brew it for her companions.”

Elyon gasped. “Please, Mr. Caesar—”

“It’s my pleasure to serve the Queen.”

Elyon flushed once again. “T-thank you.”

She observed the two. It was weird to look at them together – Caesar, his hair red as blood and skin kissed by the sun, and Keti, who had weird, shiny blotches of scales on their skin, the rough stone-like protrusions typical of a Galhot, and a long tail. Adopted, perhaps, like herself with the Browns.

“Hm?” Caesar’s eyes widened. “Do you need anything from Keti?”

“N-no!” Elyon shook her head. “I was wondering… um, did you invent this drink?”

“Well, if you mean to say if I was the one who came up the recipe, no, your Grace. It was my father, so they said. He used to brew such nice teas.”

“What happened to him?”

“…weeeellll, I’ll tell you if you tell me all about the treaty.” He winked.

“Maybe not! I’m not curious anymore, promise!”

“Really?” Caesar’s eyes smiled. It grew difficult to keep silent. “I live in this town, and I’d been to the other one frequently for business and sometimes for fun. I can tell you about them, too.”

Elyon told herself she shouldn’t be trusting so easily. Many times before, she was betrayed, but she couldn’t let this opportunity go. Still, what if Caesar wanted something from her? What if, at this very moment, he was testing her?

Then, then he would’ve poisoned this very drink, right? She would’ve fell off her chair and choked now, right? And, besides, Caesar could tell her all about the concerned towns. He could show her how to deal with things.

“…no. My decision is final.” Elyon smiled and drank from her mug. That’s right. She was a Queen, and she needed to start trusting herself more.

“Of course.” Caesar nodded. “I am a mere commoner, and bartering with the Queen over something trivial might be offensive.”

“Not really.”

“But, your Grace, something troubles you deeply and I see it in your eyes.”

Ack! Had she made herself too vulnerable? “Really?”

“Eyes are an important part of communication, your Majesty.” Caesar folded his hands together. “No matter what, you should look straight into the other parties’ eyes. You have to convince them of your sincerity and concern even without words.”

Elyon gazed at her mug. “Yeah… thanks… but, what would you do about the towns, if you were the one negotiating with them?”

Caesar leaned back. “Hm. Perhaps I’d like to know why the other town needs the extra land? It could be bad harvest, but it’s not summer yet. It could be overcrowding and they need more space for their inhabitants. It could be for business purposes.”

“But what about your hometown?”

“I wouldn’t really worry about it. We discovered better ways to stock our food and preserve it, so we’re pretty much good with food. We really do have more than enough.”

Elyon bit her lip. She should’ve done more research before coming here. The answer was that the bigger town had problems and were trying to address said problems by seizing more land.

“Don’t feel too down about it, your Grace.”

She looked up. “How wouldn’t I feel too bad about my mistake?”

“Let your regret inspire you to be better next time. Besides, you did what you thought was best.” Caesar smiled. “Well? What would you do now?”

“…I’d like to talk to their town elders again and find out why they’re doing this, even if I have to personally trudge through their fields while doing so.”

Caesar nodded. Elyon felt a little better. She wished that Caesar was her brother instead, not Phobos. Caesar looked trustworthy and acted the part, and maybe, maybe he could help her heal the wounds of the past.

-=-

“What’s going on?”

Cornelia beamed at her sister. “Just the best thing ever!”

Cornelia skipped about in their condominium unit. A model. A model! She only needed to submit a few photos of her looking pretty and some necessary documents, then wait for her plan to start rolling. Wait. Maybe she should send her face to all the agencies around Heatherfield to increase her chances! It’s not her loss if they don’t accept her; it’s theirs. Much like her friends.

“I’m going to become famous, just so you know.”

“Yeah, right.” Lillian handed her a flyer. “Somebody gave this to me. Dancing school or something. Don’t you dance on the rink or something?”

Cornelia’s eyes widened. It was an advertisement for a newly-opened dance academy, Jensen’s. “Unleash the fire within,” Cornelia read from the flyer, “Sound likes Taranee to me!” She laughed to herself.

“Uh-huh. Sure. Tell your friend, just don’t be creepy! You were all grumpy in the morning and all smiley this afternoon!”

“Bug off!”

Cornelia sighed as her sister skipped away. Taranee. Right. A friend. Taranee was a good friend. She couldn’t be approving towards the Oracle’s sudden decisions. She could still be trusted.

Cornelia pulled her phone, dialed Taranee’s number, and called.

“Cornelia, what’s up?” Taranee said as she picked up, “We were worried about you. You didn’t come back. Are you safe?”

“I’m good. Thanks,” Cornelia answered, “Um, I got some good news, for both myself and for you? Which one do you want to hear first?”

“…it’s kind of nice to hear that you seem well, but don’t you think Will would be—”

Cornelia frowned, and decided she didn’t want to hear about the rest. “Can we talk about Will later?”

“Okay, okay. I understand. Calm down. So… news, huh? You can go first.”

Cornelia smiled. Taranee was a real friend. “I’m gonna be a model! For teen apparel! What I wear will be the latest fashion trends in the whole country!”

“Oh, congratulations!”

“Congratulations to me, indeed! Can you imagine my face being up the screen and published on the magazines? Oh wait, that already happened before when I was still skating.”

“You still are skating.”

“Well, _competitively_ skating.”

“Right. Who will you model for?”

“I’m not sure yet. I still need to send photos…”

“Oh. Well, good luck! That’ll really be good for your resumé. Previous work experiences are heavily valued.”

“Thanks. Now, guess what’s the good news for you?”

“Hmm… you found a good college reviewer for me?”

Cornelia laughed. Taranee really liked to think about her future, didn’t she? “No, silly! Besides, college is ages away!”

Taranee was also laughing on the other line. “Okay. What’s the good news for me?”

Cornelia brought the flyer to her face. “Give me the first thing you think after this: _unleash the fire within!_ ” She waited a few moments for added effect. “So, what did you think about?”

“…my element. Me. As a guardian. Is this really supposed to be good news?”

“Yeah! Very good news!” Cornelia giggled. “It’s from a flyer for a new dancing school. Dance academy, I mean. The Jensen’s Dance Academy. If you want, I can join you. Physical fitness is important to models.” Her friend was quiet for a while. Had Cornelia unknowingly offended her? “Um, is it not your thing? I was—”

“Oh, please don’t think that. Sorry. I was distracted for a while. But yeah, I’ll—”

Cornelia huffed. “Wait, wait. Lemme guess. Will and your new friend. Ororu.” The slap from yesterday still stung. She had to explain that to her parents, though luckily, they let the matter go. Lillian had the nerve to tease her about it earlier this morning, but Napoleon warned her about not harming the Heart of Earth. Ugh.

“Her name is Orube—” Taranee wanted to correct her. _Hmph!_

“Whatever. I don’t care. We’re not friends.”

The silence and tension dragged out. What was Taranee even thinking? Cornelia embarrassed herself yesterday, and to top that, Will was siding with the new girl! The stranger!

“Uh… okay,” came Taranee’s bland reply. “Listen. The Lins want me to work now.”

“Oh.” Cornelia, once again, embarrassed herself. Of course! Taranee and the others were helping out the Lins! How could she have forgotten?

“Thanks for telling me about the dance academy. I’ll call you later, okay?”

“Sure.”

Cornelia didn’t immediately put her phone down. What was up with Taranee?

Anyway, Cornelia didn’t need more negativity in her life. She didn’t need any fake friends. In the new chapter of her life, she’d make better friends and her fake friends would disappear into her past. Besides, if Cornelia could keep the dresses she’d wear at the shoots, then Lillian could have her old wardrobe all to herself and her toys and her dollies. Yes! Another problem solved! No more ruined clothes!

But, hmm. She should be in her best condition. She immediately looked into the medicine cabinet and applied a few ointments over her face. She set an alarm clock. She’d take a quick nap in the safety of her room, then ask her mom to help her take some pictures. Then, tomorrow, they can mail her pictures.

Perfect. Very good, Cornelia!

-=-

Taranee ended the call, eyeing Sylla's table. She turned to her friends.

"Okay. So Cornelia's acting kinda weird, and so is Irma, AND, so is Mr. Sylla! Geez! Just, just look at them!"

Sylla was explaining something about computers to Irma, and the teen seemed to enjoy the confusing information being lain out before her. However, Matt didn't see anything suspicious about it. "I don't know, Taranee. Irma seems to have found her passion, and her teacher is, um, teaching her?"

"No, Matt! Look at Mr. Sylla's eyes. And his friend, too!"

Matt and the others took a good look. In some way, the figures of Sylla, his acquaintance, and Irma suddenly morphed into very familiar shapes. Cedric, Phobos, and Elyon.

"Oh, God," Will exclaimed.

"Ewww!" Hay Lin squealed. "The telltale signs are there! Two adult men who know what they're doing, and one young girl who's in a brand new world... it's so similar! I just hope that neither of those men are dating, ew, a young girl."

The memory of Cedric and Miranda revealing their relationship sent shudders up their spine.

"Ew," Taranee followed suit. "That's the worst case scenario."

Matt looked uncomfortable, but he still had some faith in Sylla. "...err, but still! What proof do we have that they're bad guys? And what's their goal with Irma?"

The girls hummed as they thought. There wasn’t anything suspicious about Irma, was there?

"We can ask for a second opinion?" Taranee suggested, and turned to the kitchen. Taranee was about to ask Orube, but the Lins seemed like they wouldn't appreciate the sudden interruption. "Um, excuse me, can I borrow Or… Rebecca for a while?"

Meera Lin turned to Taranee, who was pointing at Orube. “Sure! She can take a small break,” the altermere answered, ushering Orube out from the kitchen.

“Am I doing anything wrong, Elder Meera Lin?” the Basiliadean asked.

“Not at all. But you should help the girls first.” Meera Lin winked at her, and returned to chopping vegetables.

“Thanks, Meera Lin,” Taranee said, and dragged Orube to behind the counter. The guardian gestured to Sylla’s table. “Okay. Please answer: is there anything wrong here?”

The older girl stared at the scene before her. "She... joined them in eating, when she's supposed to be serving them?"

Taranee nodded. "Yes! And...?"

Orube squinted her eyes. She abruptly closed them, as if sensing something else.

"What?"

"I can feel... waves. Electric waves. Coming from there, going outside..."

With eyes still closed, Orube made for the door. Taranee felt responsible for this, so she went with the warrior as the other teens simply watched from afar and pretended to go back to work. What was the older girl talking about?

When they made it outside, Taranee looked around. A van with a satellite disk at the top was parked nearby. That was freaky. Was somebody filming a spy thriller or something?

"It's coming from there," Orube said, pointing to the van. "What do those devices of yours do, Miss Taranee?"

Devices, electric waves, radio waves. Then, it hit Taranee. A spy. Sylla had to be a spy. But what for? Taranee's memories took her back to the last battle with Cedric. Surely Matt and the Regents had casted the glamour correctly, right? But what if he didn't?

No way. There couldn’t be any way for them to discover anything magical. All three Regents were working to keep the glamour together, and the whole incident with the destruction in downtown Heatherfield was shrugged off as a hailstorm. Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil. It was supposedly a normal night.

But, there was no taking risks here. If Sylla and his friend were spies sent to uncover them or whatever, then Irma was in trouble. But, this still wasn't proof. For all Taranee knew, this could be a van of nutjobs or technicians or whatever. She'll have to have faith for now, or else they'll have a Dean Collins case again. But what if it turned to be an Elyon-turns-against-us case...?

But, as she stared, a guy with a rough beard and a beanie peeked out of the van. He and Taranee met eyes – Taranee considered running back into the restaurant with Orube, but the guy greeted, “You like my baby, Darlin’?”

Ew. She was not being catcalled, was she? “No. I’m only wondering why a weirdo like you is parked here.”

“Babe. Reception’s good here, ya know. Noon time show, Jinky’s Jinxes? You know?!” Ugh. The equally weird variety show that Peter and her dad likes.

“No thanks.” Taranee dragged Orube back into the restaurant. That was weird. Even Orube was holding a confused expression. So maybe the van belonged to some weirdoes…

Meanwhile, in the van, the guy removed his beanie and turned to the guys behind him. “Keep it going, guys. We’re almost there. Sylla and Mr. Riddle are already inside.”

“I don’t understand it, Flick,” said the man who operated the radio signals, “There’s some kind of anomaly surrounding this whole restaurant. We can’t get any sound waves from inside. This can’t be due to the weather! We’re nearing spring now!”

“Yep,” the man on the communications line agreed, “I can’t even hear anything from Riddle’s mic or Sylla’s mic. All we have right now is Sylla’s so-called favorite student, and whatever they have to report once we get back to HQ. I almost feel bad for the girl, though.”

“But you know the theory, right, Jude? They were the ones who participated in that weirdo hailstorm last year. That the little movie we had over at the mall was all a… a…”

“Glamour,” Flick supplied, “Magic and all that stuff. You really believe in that, newbie?”

The guy shrugged, smiling rather sheepishly.

-=-

With Aldarn’s help, Caleb gathered the messengers and what spare men he could find. They had to find Vaal the Useless, or any of the other former court members under Phobos’ reign. Why didn’t he think of that? Because he thought they’d already sent the threats behind bars? Because he spent so much time worrying about Cornelia? Hey! That wasn’t such a bad thing; it was normal to care about someone you love.

Then was the relationship between Cedric and Miranda, well, not strong enough? Oh, whatever. That wasn’t his business. It was funny at first, but it was annoying trying to talk while they were arguing, like what Tynar said.

Anyway. Caleb had a kingdom to fix. His work was still not done. Especially not when everyone didn’t like dealing with some small fry like, bandits. Caleb admitted, it was tiring to think of them. They were small groups spreading despair and destruction over small places with a great distance from each other, like a pesky insect biting the skin on different appendages. Ugh. This was the simple part. Talking his fellow men into doing something he didn’t like.

“My friends!” he said to his men, “You must remember, that our villages are being pillaged by bandits. Acts of mischief. Acts of rebellion against our kingdom and its queen!” Caleb thought of the day he took on the title and role of rebel leader. Once, he was the one who rebelled. Now, he was the one who’d send the rebels away. “We cannot let bandits terrorize our citizens like this, forever.”

“But we do not know who the bandits are!” cried one.

“We don’t even understand their movements,” complained another.

“That is true!” Caleb affirmed, earning lots of murmuring from his audience. “But! I have a clue on how to solve it, but we must find the right man. His name is Vaal. Vaal the Useless. He was once a member of the court of Phobos—” the men talked louder among themselves, “—but I hear he has the information.”

Caleb could hear it. “How did he know that?” “Do you think he’s actually a spy?” “What’s he talking about?” He could hear Aldarn trying to calm the army. He could hear everyone’s hesitation. He knew it would arrive to this. Doubt made strong pillars crumble, and his men would not listen to him if his ideas sounded way too crazy. He had to show them that there was little to doubt – to make them believe that they should not doubt.

“We do not have any other lead on this case. If anyone can present me any other clue right now, come and tell me! Tell us!” The clamor died. Caleb waited a while to see if anyone would step forward and refute his claims – if anyone had anything about the bandits or any other useful information. He waited and waited, eyeing his men for a good while. Eventually, everybody started looking uncomfortable, standing there with nothing to present him, their commander. Aldarn smiled at him; Caleb reciprocated. Things were looking good.

“So, I ask you to trust in me, as I trust in your abilities to carry out your tasks. Are you with me?!” Caleb said the last line out of habit, but nonetheless, the soldiers were livened up, eager to serve their kingdom.

“Send the message! Find all of the former court members! Find Vaal the Useless!” He barked at them – the messengers swiftly rode out on their horses, and his men made way to the nearest villages. Caleb grinded his teeth, suddenly doubtful of his own faith. This was the harder part. “I just hope Phobos spoke the truth.”

“Everything all right?”

Caleb almost jumped at the voice of his father behind him. “Y-yes,” he nodded at Julian, “Yes. I’m good; thank you, Father.”

“You seem so distracted these days.” Julian gave him a smile. “Are you still thinking of your dear Cornelia, or… are you thinking of… your mother?”

Caleb felt a chill run up his spine. Right. Mother. His mother turned out to be Nerissa. That wasn’t the best piece of information he’d ever stumbled upon, and he’d like to put the past behind now.

“No, Father. It’s nothing about her. It’s not guardian-related. It’s…” Caleb hesitated. Should he tell?

If he told his father, then it would be a show of weakness. He wasn’t supposed to be weak – not in front of his men, not in front of the Queen, and most importantly, not in front of his father.

“You’re doing good, my son.” Julian smiled at him, putting a hand on his shoulder. “You’re doing more than that. You’re doing _great_.”

Caleb tried to smile back. He really wanted to believe those words at that moment, but somehow, his doubts were challenging his faith. Oh, well. At least they weren’t dealing with anything as tyrannical as Phobos or Nerissa.

-=-

He was a Lord. He was nobility, and he was smart.

But for all his craftiness and talent, he was stuck here in prison. Cedric growled, his cell too small for his large coils, and the inmates making it worse for him.

“What a scum!”

“He’s nothing but a rude snake.”

“Disgusting for a man his age!”

He growled at them, but they did not stop. They neither feared nor respected him.

Ugh, not after that failed gamble of his. He almost had it all – power, Meridian, the universe – but the guardians somehow still found a way to stop him, despite. Where did they get that power? It was unlike any of their abilities he’d seen before.

Ugh! This couldn’t be his end! Cedric growled again as he tried to slither about in his too-small cell and hide his face for a while. Things hadn’t been better in weeks, and he was still a laughing stock among the prisoners.

If only there was a way out of this stupid prison.

“What’s wrong, Cedric?” Phobos asked, dragging out his s’s and imitating Cedric’s snakely way of speaking, “Where has your boldness gone?”

“Away with his ‘borrowed’ powers and his manners!” Miranda snickered.

Everyone else followed with even more cheers. Every single one of them. He was smarter than anyone inside this, this facility! Cavigor was a much better prison than this thing set up by the mage or the sorceress or whoever she was!

Cedric growled once more. “Shut it, you fools!”

“Who’s the fool here but you?” Even Frost was laughing at him! The nerve of this dumb ass!

Cedric grumbled and turned his eyes towards the back wall. He stared and stared, trying to take his mind off the insults…

Hm. Now that he looked at it, it suddenly seemed brittle enough for him to break through. He knocked against the wall, once, twice, thrice. He punched.

“Ow!”

“What are you doing now,” asked Phobos, “Making a fool out of yourself, trying to take your anger out on the prison wall?”

Laughter roared. Even the guards were laughing.

But, perhaps Cedric could still save face and earn some respect. He would bust out of this horrible prison, and he would regain his honor. He would escape, and he would take his revenge on those five little girls who wronged his honorable name.

But for now, he would think about the perfect timing.

-=-

Deep in a forest in Arkhanta, a man quickly traversed the road on horseback. Strange news filled the taverns of Urdath, and the man knew that the information must be spread.

“May the gods mercy us!” he exclaimed as he stopped at the end of the road. It wasn’t that he pulled the reins on his horse; his horse slowed down, as if complaining to her master. The man stroked his mare’s neck. “Good girl, good girl.”

He got off his horse and approached the smaller forest of thin black trunks and ash-white leaves before him. He chanted, “Hear me, o Keepers, dear revered rulers. By your merciful rule, I obey, if in your abode, I may stay.”

He waited a few moments and grabbed the reins of his horse. The mare was still reluctant to go beyond the road, and onto the cobblestone path under the black forest, but her master urged her on. It didn’t take more than 20 or so steps until large plains and small houses came into view. Surrounded by the black forest was the man’s town, and in the middle was a hill.

“Dear heavens, we may be doomed,” the man murmured, leading his horse towards the houses.

An aged woman and a little boy greeted them.

“Lodi!” cheered the boy, “Lodi! What you got?!”

“Hello, Lodi,” the woman greeted, “Your horse is beautiful. Is she new?”

“Yes, thank you,” the mare’s master replied, panting, and handed the reins to the boy.

“What news do you bring from the outside?”

Cracking soil, drying rivers… changing lands, fewer birdsongs, restless animals… and now, the evil faeries of another land. The man pushed the disturbing ideas away. “Things have turned for the worst, Elder Dai. We may as well prepare for everyone’s funerals.” Lodi scratched his head. “Elder Dai, we can’t live like this further! We must forget our pride and seek _their_ help, _his_ help!”

The elderly woman’s eyes widened, as if threatening to fall out of their sockets. “ _No!_ I refuse! Did they come to our aid when we needed their help? Did that man ever listen to us when we said he shouldn’t defile the banshees?!”

“But he—”

“The only solution to the death of the world is when the banshee is freed, one way or another!"

“W-what’s going on?” The boy’s small but frightened voice alerted the two adults, who shared a look. “Did _s-something_ happen again, Lodi?”

Elder Dai sighed. Such a young soul, a life still too early to die. And yet, he would be exposed to such a catastrophe… yet another catastrophe. She reached to caress his head, to soothe his trembling and his fears. “Figo, the way we live… no, the way you live is about to change.”

The boy gulped. “F-for worse?”

“We cannot say.” Elder Dai looked towards the strange hill and turned to Lodi. “If you wish, you may tell Ilse. I doubt she’d give you a favorable answer, though.”

Still, Lodi nodded, patting his horse’s neck, and he made his way to the hill. The mare whinnied as she watched her master go.

Her master, of course, thought nothing of it. He calmly trekked through the hill’s thick vegetation, passing the trees that seemed to be in an endless loop, and battling the fatigue caused by the sloping ground and the thinning air. He had something more important to focus on, rather than the calm and silence of this hill, the surreal, eerie aura of the trees, or his breath becoming short.

Finally, Lodi reached a house, obscured by the overgrowth of the forest, but well-lit by the sun. The trees had given way for sunlight, but not for curious eyes beyond it. The house was quite simple, even if it was big. It was part wood and straw; part stone on one side. Cooking required its owner to take the makeshift stove outside – a stove only when there is food to cook, and a bonfire or campfire during cold nights. Benches and small chairs of sturdy bamboo were right next to the doorway, covered only by a thick cloth hung from the inside.

Despite this humble little dwelling being seemingly for a simple owner, Lodi made sure to keep his distance, and bowed before the house.

“Miss Ilse,” he called out, “I bring you important news.”

Lodi had some time to catch his breath again, and to clear his head. He had to formulate his words well, or else, he might be turned away again. This whole thing was useless, he thought, this whole distance between his beloved town and this wretched world. He was prepared to humble himself and take a blow to his pride as a citizen of this town, and yet, yet…

“Lodi,” said she, who he called. Lodi lifted his chin, and his vision was met with a small teen girl with wavy red hair.

“Miss Ilse, pardon me for the disturbance.”

“Spare the formalities. What is it?”

“Our land is dying.”

The wind swayed; the leaves rustled; the wind died.

“…I am aware of that,” was her answer.

Lodi stood abruptly, taking her by the shoulders. “Miss Ilse, please—”

“There’s nothing else we could do while that man remains in control of everything around here.” She huffed her cheeks and glared at Lodi’s arms, but she did not do anything beyond that. “Even _she_ turned me away. There is nothing to be done but live our lives until the end of the world comes.”

“Miss Ilse, you must humble yourself. There is—” Lodi bit his lower lip, forcing himself to not scold her, and forcing his mind to think of something else to say. “…there are evil faeries who come from another land. They seek destruction.”

“Baseless rumors, perhaps. What kind of stories do the highlanders make up these days?”

“N-no, Miss Ilse. They… they were called the guardians!”

The girl’s eyes widened.

“I do not know of what they truly are, but I… feel terrified.” Lodi kneeled to look at her in the eyes, tightening his grip on her shoulders. “Miss Ilse, we must seek out other towns and ask for their help, and offer our services to them once more! Maybe we could try again; maybe they’ll listen this time. We—”

“Out of the question, Lodi,” was her firm answer, “Please go home.”

“Miss Ilse—”

“ _Please_.”

The man’s eyes were almost watery. He felt disappointed at his efforts to convince either Elder Dai or this girl, as though he tried to move mountains with his bare hands. He shut his eyes. Slowly, he removed his hands from her and bowed. “…thank you for your time, Miss Ilse.”

“And thank you for telling me. You may leave.”

Lodi forced himself to get up, his eyes now focused on the ground. He turned around and dragged his feet as he left her.

Ilse sighed, and sank into a bench. When were the times not difficult? And why would the Guardians’ appearance in this world at this time make things different, for better or for worse? They would never move this world’s Heart.

“Heart of Arkhanta…” she whispered, staring at her view of the sunny skies through thin hands. “The Hearts. The core stones of each world that Kandrakar protects. Kandrakar… and its Guardians.”

_Evil faeries… guardians…_ Ilse let out a bitter laugh. “Yeah. Evil, indeed. Why did you show up just now? If you were here earlier… if you could’ve been here…”

Ilse felt tears edge around her eyes. She shut her eyelid close, letting herself lie on the bench.

“Hey, sis, you told me this was for the better. So, how…”

Ilse curled around herself, sobbing and condemning the world. “How could you all have abandoned us?!” she cried over and over, “How could you?!” The many lives who perished, the atrocities committed against them, the hurtful words condemning them over and over and over…

Faces, faces, faces. Faces of disappointment. Faces of despair. Faces of fear. They flashed in her mind again, now that Lodi was away. She almost regretted sending him away. For a while, all her troubles were set aside, and she could focus on something else. Now he was gone, and she couldn’t simply call him back.

Just like _her_.

“How could you…?” she asked the phantom face that appeared in her mind. If only that woman didn’t… if only she stayed behind and suffered with them. It’d be a hard life – hell, it was a hard life already, but they’d be happy together, and things would be… things wouldn’t blow out of proportion. They wouldn’t have to suffer like this. Arkhanta wouldn’t have to suffer like this.

And they would certainly be not in this hell.

“H-how… could you…?” she asked the world, but the world could not answer her. The only response it gives her is a cool breeze to soothe the hot air of a sunny day.

“You’re too late, Guardians.”


	4. Colliding Forces

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **A/N:** Hey, since we're getting more intense the more we get into the story, I'm raising this fic's rating into M. I hope the wait was worth it. Life had been a little unforgiving to me in January.
> 
> **Recap:** In Meridian, Caleb gets an unexpected tip about certain personalities associated with Phobos from none other than Phobos himself. Elyon messes up the treaty, but gets pointers from her host, Caesar. Cedric, bullied by his former colleagues, gets the idea to escape... again.
> 
> In Heatherfield, Cornelia rebels a bit and decides to try for a modelling gig. Will signs Orube up for a temporary shift at The Silver Dragon to give the warrior an idea about the Earth life. Irma gets to indulge in her crush on Mr. Sylla. Agents are spying on them.
> 
> In Arkhanta, we see Maqi's simple perspective of life that his father Ari does not seem to appreciate. In an isolated town, a young girl named Ilse does not find hope in the guardian's arrival to her world.
> 
> **Warning:** Depictions of violence against children (child) in the middle and self-harm towards the end of this chapter. You're welcome to turn back and drop the story if it gets too graphic for your taste.

Just as they thought Riddle and Sylla were up to something, the day ended without any other suspicious activity.

Will grumbled. Yet another false lead, wasn’t it? She’d done it with Dean; she’d done it with Serena. Oh, gee. She did it to both her almost-stepparents. Now she was doing it to her teacher?

The events told her she needed no more distractions and more action. Will scheduled a meeting at Mrs. Rudolph’s house for the next day… which is today. Once there, they’d go to Arkhanta and try again.

Cornelia, as expected, was a little difficult to talk to. She wasn’t picking up the whole afternoon, or at night. Taranee negotiated in Will’s stead before it was time for bed, and a condition was placed: Lillian needed babysitting. That meant Matt had to go too.

Stupid guardianhood. Her parents’ situation wasn’t helping either. Will took deep breaths and sighed again and again, sparks appearing on her head. This was getting stressful for a 15-going-on-16-year-old to handle.

Two years. Almost two full years as guardians. And three years without her dad around. Will stared at herself in the mirror. She looked like whack. How could she attend her dad and Serena’s wedding?

Ugh! Focus!

Arkhanta. Ari. Banshee.

And the villagers! How could she forget? They could’ve asked beforehand! Will and her friends headed to Arkhanta without any information on who Ari really was, or what to expect in Arkhanta. All they knew was whatever the Oracle showed them, and they’d focused on what happened to the banshee. Even asking Yan Lin yesterday, all Will got was ‘they’re very simple people, rather stubborn at times’. Like her parents. Ugh. Focus!

Will’s impression of Arkhanta was that it was very backwater. Maybe they shouldn’t be walking up to the villagers as guardians or anything, like how she should skirt with the issue of her dad’s marriage around her mom. Argh. It was difficult to think on her own. Her mind kept wandering to other problems. She had to be at Orube’s real soon, too.

Will forced herself to get up and get dressed. Oh well. Today was another day for work.

-=-

Another day for work. Caleb sat by his desk, between the stacks of paper surrounding him. He reviewed the papers again – more land disputes, more bandit attacks, and… surprise, some information on Phobos’ court members. It was a report on who was who, mostly from servants and soldiers who once served Phobos.

Hm. Why didn’t Caleb think of that before?

These other shady nobles seemed elusive, too. They must’ve merely been funding his rule, sitting quietly in the comforts of their home while Phobos did the work for them. Names, faces from artists’ sketches, descriptions… none rang a bell in his mind. Who were all these people?

Well, except for the ones Phobos mentioned. And Haseldorf. However, Haseldorf was behind bars, so he’s off the list. Hm… maybe not. Caleb swore to himself he’d take a closer look at Haseldorf later. Maybe there’d be useful information in there, somehow. Aside from, sigh, hugong-related stuff.

Anyway.

Marquise Edna. Hideous. (Well, Caleb didn’t know what he was expecting out of Phobos’ minions.) Known to throw lavish parties here and there. Owned multiple parcels of land all over Meridian. Why did Phobos mention her? Hmm… she apparently had hold over the market of seafood. Interesting. That must be why fish and mussels were very expensive. Caleb thought he’d put some priority on her. Next.

Jonathan Ludmoore. Alchemist. Charming. Huh. Caleb actually found the man charming. This guy had this very charismatic, very confident smile. Kind of the opposite of Lord Cedric, in some ways. Ludmoore was known to have a form of a red, fire-breathing double-headed dragon (interesting). Last seen about thirteen years ago, around the time Elyon disappeared from Meridian’s radar. Flamboyant in a way, he was Phobos’ magic adviser. (Hm, that explains things about Lord Cedric…)

Finally, Vaal the Useless.

A stunted green man. Reptilian, no doubt. He didn’t look like mold, per se, but… he looked the opposite of trustworthy. He showed up only when Phobos called for him.

That was it. Nothing else followed.

Useless, indeed.

Ugh. Caleb should’ve really thought of this before. It would’ve been helpful to have investigated on Phobos’ remaining allies, no matter how weak or unremarkable they were, and have them thrown in prison. Then again, last year, they were preoccupied with adjusting to their new ruler, their new policies, and their newfound freedom. Plus, Nerissa… plus, the sorceress was busy stirring up trouble, biding her time, and skillfully playing everyone into her hands… until that, um, thing with Prince Phobos and Lord Cedric. Ugh. Disgusting.

Of course, the Queen was still adjusting to her own role, too. She even got bored of it once (Who wouldn’t feel tired about listening to hugongs, hugongs, and hugongs all day long?!), and went back to Heatherfield, with Caleb himself as her bodyguard. That was an experience; sitting with teens all day long, listening about these many things about the world, taking tests, making these projects… awesome, but, not as awesome as being rebel leader, or commander of an army.

…now that he thought of it, that had been a dangerous move. What if Phobos’ remaining minions, these nobles, tried to instill another ruler? Hah, right. As if they had power to do that, or some other trump card who’d be strong enough to lead. Caleb felt confident about this. The previous Queen Weira only had two children, and no other name came to mind regarding her rule. King Consort Zayden, maybe. But, he was dead, like the old Queen.

Wait. Who killed him? Who killed _them_? Phobos? Ugh. Despicable. Truly despicable.

“Hey Caleb, you got a moment— _woah!_ ”

Caleb looked up from his desk, finding Aldarn by the door.

“Woah. This looks like a pigsty!” his friend remarked. “Where can I walk?”

Caleb glanced around his office – pieces of paper and stacks of paper littered the floor. Oh. Right. All the paperwork he said he’d attend to, that he told himself he’d organize later. Well. Now could be counted as later, but… _later_. For now, he had to entertain Aldarn.

And Aldarn… he was staring at the mess before him. He bent down to put some of the sheets away with shaky hands. Caleb sighed.

“Oh, darn it, I’ll do it myself,” he stated, standing up from his chair. Aldarn whipped his head, wearing a smirk.

“Did you just swear, or did you call me?”

“ _Aldarn!_ ”

They chuckled. Caleb carefully treaded over the cluttered mess of his floor. Man. This was much worse than he thought! He had trouble extending his legs to ensure he wouldn’t step on anything important, and to ensure that he’d be stepping on an uncovered part of the floor. He almost lost his balance a few times, earning laughter from his friend.

“You ought to clean this mess up, Caleb.”

“Later. _Oof_ —!”

“What’s got you in a knot, again? I don’t recall that I ever had to enter this room in such a mess!”

“Not much, just… _woops!_ Just trying to sift through everything. You know. _Hugong land feuds_.”

“And you thought you’d had enough of them!”

“Apparently, they’re much harder to handle, than Prince Phobos himself… _gotcha!_ ”

Caleb reached the door, finally, as he stumbled into Aldarn. Aldarn caught him and helped him regain his balance.

“You really ought to clean up,” Aldarn repeated.

“I will. Soon.” Caleb winked. “So, what’s the problem?”

“It’s not a problem. We have word on Vaal the Useless.”

Caleb quickly strode away, grabbing his friend by the wrist.

“Uh, Caleb—”

“We can’t waste time! Let’s go!”

“The briefing room’s the other way around.”

… _right_. Caleb turned around, still holding Aldarn by the wrist.

“You’re acting odd again, Caleb.”

“Not really. I just like it better when there’s some action!”

-=-

A day had passed, and yet Taranee's mind was still on the words Cornelia told her. _Unleash the fire within._ Dance academy. Her legs wanted to move. Her arms felt rather noodle-like. It was as if fire was in her limbs, and it wanted out.

She took a deep sigh as she took her camera set and cradled it in her arms. A forgotten hobby. Her fingers glided over every feature and over the film. Through the film, she saw herself, dancing.

Memories of Sesamo, her former home.

Her last night at Sesamo was one of the best and worst nights ever. She and her former friends were a team too and there were five of them. She was their leader and they formed a dance group, and even made it through contest after contest, and this last one was one of their best performances ever. She performed. Her last night; her last performance.

They would've missed her flight, had she stayed to see her group make it to the podium. She didn't have a choice back then.

Her hands trembled as she wiped her tears. A second chance landed on her lap, she thought. Now that she had a choice... now that the power was back in her hands...

"Are you really going?"

Taranee looked up. It was Peter. She told her brother yesterday about the thing. Her thing. The dance academy.

"Hey, bro."

"Sup?" He smiled. "My lil sis, a dancer, again! I thought you swore you'd never think about it ever again?"

"I did, but..." Taranee sighed. "How do I explain it?"

"You miss it?"

"...a lot."

Peter sat next to her and the bed bounced as it accommodated his weight. “Oh, I knew it. I knew that since we moved here, you’ve been missing a… _liiiittle_ something.”

“Gosh, what do I do with a brother like you?! One day, you’ll be able to look into my thoughts!” Even though Taranee herself read (and heard) minds… well, just the minds of the guardians and some select magical people like Elyon.

"Ha-ha. Funny. So is it time for me to see you in those silly costumes again?"

"Peter!"

“Well, why not? You gotta take control of your life sometimes!”

Peter was right – these past months had been a whirlwind, and it would be nice if she could do something she chose for herself. “Yeah. I will. I want to.” Taranee pushed her camera aside and spun about. “I want to dance again!”

“Awesome!” Peter clapped and took her in his arms to dance about in a waltz-like tempo. “The only step left is when we go tell Mom."

Taranee frowned as she led him into a spin. "Not yet, Pete."

"Why not?"

"Keep it secret for a bit longer, puh-lease?"

"Aww, Taranee!"

A smile crept up Taranee’s lips. "You know how mom takes these things."

"That's why I offered to tell her in your place."

"Thanks, Pete. But... I want to tell her myself. You know… take control."

"Got it!" Peter winked.

“When I want it, where I want it.”

“Sure, sure! Big Bro Pete’s mouth is zipped!”

Peter was really the best brother she could ever ask for.

“Alright, now that’s off my system, can I ask my brotherly unit to let me go?”

“Aww, now that you got what you want, you suddenly hate me? Ouch, I’m _hurt!_ ”

“Oh, shut up!” Taranee gave a few pats on Peter’s back as he left her room. “I’m headed to a friend’s, that’s all.”

“Okay. Well, don’t forget to tell me if you need back-up with mom or something!”

“Yeah, thanks!”

She placed her camera back into her cabinet and readied herself to head to Mrs. Rudolph’s house. It’s looking like a great day...

-=-

Ari’s sweaty hands twisted the knob as he mustered up his courage to walk into the room. He shouldn’t be scared; it was only his son and that dumb sickness, after all. Besides, which father wouldn’t want to play with his son and watch his son smile?

Only that, in this case, Maqi didn’t smile at him. Why? Why him? Everything that Ari could give, he did. He accepted the loss of his beloved and welcomed their son into the world with tearful eyes. He had to separate his time between watching his child and toiling in the fields. He braved through his own illnesses to afford his son’s own medications. He braved through evil to harness the good, but why? Why had it been his son? Why did the world hate Maqi? Why did the universe turn its back on the small boy and made it so difficult for all of them?

Ari entered the room, and the nurse merely bowed. This one was the best among the nurses he’d hired. She only spoke when necessary and did her job as he told her to. The first one was someone who liked to come between him and his son. The second one was neglectful and lazy. This was the third one. Ari was so relieved he didn’t have to go through so many people.

So many people… so many people out there were still trying to be happy, despite the plague that slowly descended upon their world. And yet, yet… Kandrakar. Cursed Kandrakar. The so-called Overseer of the Infinite Worlds. And the Oracle. And his Guardians. They would never help. All they wanted to do was cause more trouble. How funny. And they were supposed to protect the innocent, weren’t they? To fight darkness, to fight for the light.

So why were they so opposed to him? Why did they want to fix what wasn’t broken? Why didn’t they want to face the real problem here?

Ugh! He shouldn’t allow himself to be distracted again. This was a moment between him and his son, right? Damn it; it was the illness. Remembering that curse that the world gave upon his son distracted Ari.

Ari took a deep breath, and approached his son, who was drawing the sun over the citadel. Ari smiled. Maqi would be a good craftsman once he triumphed over his illness. But, this condition of his allowed him to only draw the citadel. He should draw something else from time to time too, though. All good children had lots to draw!

“Maqi?” he called.

Maqi flinched and whined.

“Maqi?”

The boy whined louder.

“Maqi…?”

“No!” Maqi slapped Ari’s hand away.

Why? What had he done wrong to his son again? No, no. This was the illness. This was the illness talking. Maqi couldn’t see him or hear him right now.

“Maqi, please—”

“ _NO!_ ” Maqi screamed.

“Maqi—!”

Ari took Maqi by the shoulder to look into his eyes. Maqi wailed and screamed and scratched.

"Why?! Why is this disease hiding you, holding you back?! I know you want to do so, so many things—"

"Daddy no! No! _NO!_ "

Despaired, Ari took Maqi by the face. Maqi froze and shut his eyes.

"Please. Look at me. Look at me! It's me, Maqi! It's your Daddy!"

Maqi's face scrunched up; he was in so much pain!

"I'm sorry, Maqi," Ari continued, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry I can't find a cure for you! I'm sorry this disease makes you feel so painful and so hateful! But I promise, Maqi, I promise you..."

Ari hugged his son tightly. "I promise you everything will be fine..."

But, Maqi did not stop crying. Instead, he cried, and cried, and cried. So noisy… so noisy!

Ari reached for the toys and offered it to Maqi. “Maqi, can you hear me? I said everything will be fine!”

But no matter which toy he offered, Maqi could not be comforted.

Ari walked back to the toys’ boxes. Ugh. When did Maqi even play with these many toys he owned? Why couldn’t he see his son ever using them?! These toys were bad toys! He gave them a good kick, and the toys scattered around. Ari proceeded to crush them under his feet. _CRACK!_ Useless! _CRACK! CRUSH!_ All useless!

And then, he noticed. Maqi was wailing even louder.

“ _D-Daddy, no!_ ”

_Daddy, no! Daddy, no! Daddy, no!_ That was the illness talking! Maqi would never say such a thing, but the illness made him say such hateful things!

“Shut up!” Ari shouted back, kicking and crushing toys about. He only needed to rid of the evil things, and to remind his son. Then, then Maqi would finally overcome his illness! “Everything you behold with your eyes! Everything you feel with your hands! Everything around you! Is! The fruit! Of! My! Immense! Love!” He punctuated his words with stomps. Toys broke apart in his fury. “I suffered endlessly!” Crush. “Day after day!” Crush. “I imprisoned evil in person! For your comfort, Maqi! All for your comfort!” Crush, crush, _crush!_ “Maqi, please, listen to me! You’re in there! I know it! You can do it! I will crush the evil force so you can overcome your illness!”

“No! No, no, no! _Daddy, no!_ ”

“SHUT! _UP!_ ” _That cursed disease—!_

Ari raised his hand to hit the demon hiding in his son. Why wasn’t it shutting up?!

However, as soon as he was about to make contact with Maqi’s head, an ethereal hand stopped his arm.

“…Yua.” Ari’s voice was still loud. “Do not interfere with me.”

“M-my Lord…” came his banshee servant’s shrill voice, “The Guardians… will… be back…! I sense it!”

Ari stiffened. _The Guardians!_ How could he allow the illness to once more distract him?!

“I sense… Kandrakar… peeking upon us!”

Ari withdrew his hand, feeling Yua’s phantom arm release him. He looked around the mess. “Clean this up, banshee,” he ordered.

Yua’s magic lurked in the air. In an instant, the toys were fixed, and they floated back into their boxes as if nothing happened. As he tried to focus, Ari noticed one of the toys. He grabbed for it, holding it tightly in his hands.

“M-my Lord…?”

“Prepare yourself, Yua. I have a gift for the Guardians of Kandrakar.” Ari escorted himself out, chuckling to himself. “And you, nursemaid, get rid of these toys. They are evil. As I should’ve expected of the banshee’s power. Make sure to call for the toy-maker in Urdath.”

The ever-quiet nurse bowed.

-=-

Talk about perfect timing.

Around lunchtime, the shifts were changing, and therefore the guards were distracted. At long last.

Cedric listened closely. He counted one, two, three guards. Apparently, the others were out to either round up on Vaal the Useless or prepare for the Queen’s arrival. That meant the army had shifted and spread out, which meant there were less people down in the prison.

Cedric never pegged Elyon to be a competent Queen, or for her to build up a competent army. It was he and her incompetent brother who supervised her time, and while the rebel leader outsmarted them sometimes, he was still young and inexperienced. Tch.

The new guards sounded bored. They were most likely also fresh recruits, people who willingly joined the army because of the rebels’ victory, and now that things were more or less ‘normal’, they were disillusioned. Cedric chuckled to himself and turned to the back wall. This was truly the perfect opportunity.

He slithered towards the entrance of his cell. He gazed and observed the enemy. The new guards were yawning and complaining; the prisoners busy with their lunch. Phobos was bitching about his food again, and his former minions arguing about the quality of the food.

Perfect.

Cedric charged against the wall. Once. Twice. The third time, it crashed, brick and stone falling before him.

He grinned.

Behind him, guards and prisoners alike gasped and panicked and yelled, but, no matter. Cedric cared little for them as he planned this all by himself; he would reap the fruits of his efforts all by himself.

He slithered into the unknown corridors of the Infinite City that stretched behind the prison, and hopefully, away from those who ruined his name. He would find the guardians, and he would destroy them.

Revenge truly made for a great dessert.

-=-

Will felt a migraine attacking her head the moment she arrived at Orube’s.

She tried to tell herself it wasn’t because Matt hadn’t arrived, or that it wasn’t because Cornelia arrived with Lillian and Napoleon in tow.

She wasn’t convincing herself at all, and sparks appeared on her head again.

“I’m surprised we’re still meeting here,” was Cornelia’s greeting to her, “Especially after I said that _somebody_ has to… take care of this brat.”

Lillian stuck out a tongue at her. Napoleon was happily seated in the little girl’s arms – good for him, then. Will blew the stray strand of hair that was blocking her vision. She glanced at the others – wait, everybody was gathered outside the house. What was going on?

“Pussycat’s holed up inside, I think,” Irma answered her unspoken question, “Have you taught her how to answer the doorbell?”

Will slapped her hand over her face. Ugh.

Just as they wondered what was taking the warrior so long, something smelled. The girls sniffed the air, and through the wintry haze, they could see dark smoke wafting aloft… from the window.

“Our house! Mrs. Rudolph’s house!”

“It’s burning!”

“Taranee take it out, quick!”

Everybody scrambled to get inside, not minding that they practically barged in somebody else’s home. Well, who cares about that, now? Somebody’s house was burning in the middle of winter!

When Taranee saw the fire, she immediately waved her hands and controlled the flames. Orube was huffing and coughing about, her face and her clothes covered in soot. Hay Lin made the smoke twirl about and leave the house for good. In a few seconds, everything was back under control.

The neighbors asked about the fuss, but the girls shooed them away (successfully!).

Sigh.

“This isn’t good for my complexion,” Cornelia noted.

“What happened?” Will asked Orube, as she helped the warrior up. Huh, her arms were bandaged… already bandaged?

“I… ugh, hack! I tried to…cook something!” Orube explained, her ears flat and her tail… well, the hairs of her tail flaring about. She held onto Will rather tightly, too rough for Will’s taste, but the Keeper of the Heart ignored it in favor of keeping everything in order.

“And you almost burned the house,” Cornelia sighed.

“Why?” Lillian asked her, “It’s not like you can cook, either!”

“Oh, yes I can!”

As Cornelia swooped in to tackle her sister, Lillian dropped Napoleon. The familiar was not at all happy with being rudely handled and chose to jump into Will’s arms. Cat number one here, cat number two next to her.

“Hey there, Sweetheart,” Napoleon purred. It definitely wasn’t aimed at Will; he was staring at Orube. Thankfully, she ignored him.

Irma announced, “Everything but the oven looks fine!”

“So where’s Matt?” Cornelia asked.

“Present!” Matt had a fireman in tow. The girls sighed.

Will was sure that the fates weren’t rolling in favor of her health. Her head was getting pretty sparky today.

-=-

As the girls locked themselves inside Mrs. Rudolph’s house, Matt lead Lillian into the streets, with Napoleon riding in his arms.

“So, what’s this super top secret thing the girls are doing?” Lillian asked, huffing her cheeks, “And why do they need to be so sneaky about it inside some stranger’s house?”

“Uh… just responsibilities to people! As a group!” he scratched his head. He had to change topics. “Wanna get hot cocoa?”

“Suuuure. It’s on you, right?”

“On me!” Matt fumbled for his wallet and held it up. “Yeah, it’s on me, all on me, your babysitter for the day!”

Lillian groaned. “Man, I wish I was already as old as you guys! I’d have the money to buy everything I like… plus, I don’t want you guys to always babysit me. I’m a big girl now!”

Matt nodded. Darn. Lillian sure could impersonate an older girl. Hey, when did her hand seem so big…

“Uh, kid?” Napoleon tugged on him. “You might want to look at her.”

Though confused, Matt turned around… and gasped as it all made sense.

“Uh, Matt, when did you get so short?” said the clearly teenage girl in pink teenage winter clothes before him. “You were waaay taller than I remember.”

Matt could only point into the glass of the store they passed by, and the girl who he assumed was Lillian gasped even louder than he did upon seeing her reflection. How could it happen? Hadn’t her powers as the Heart of Earth been passed onto them, her Regents?

Fearing that someone was watching them, Matt grabbed onto Lillian’s wrist and lead her back inside Mrs. Rudolph’s house, which the girls had thankfully vacated already.

“Good thinking, Matty-boy!” Napoleon said.

“Y-you talk?!” Lillian said through her pants, pointing at her familiar. “S-since when can you talk, Napoleon?!”

“Ever since you wished for it!”

“ _What?!_ ”

Lillian looked to Matt for an explanation. He could hear the scolding he’d get, but for now, he had a bigger force to reckon with, and it was Lillian, a little kid who happened to be the Heart of Earth. He just hoped that nobody saw Lillian poof into a teenage girl…

“A-and, where’s my sister and her friends?!” she asked him. He couldn’t answer. “If you’re not gonna answer, then I wanna go out!”

“Uh.” Matt gazed outside. There was a van parked outside and some guy trimming his garden plants, but there wasn’t anyone or anything that suspicious… still! “I can’t guarantee your safety yet, we… really can’t do that?”

She stomped. “You’re so confusing! I’m gonna head outside now, danger or no danger!”

“H-hold up! Your sister will—"

“Well, I’m a grown-up now, and she’s not here, and you won’t tell me anything, so I can do whatever I want!”

“Uhhh…” Matt tried to think. “Okay, what about this? You give me about ten minutes to explain, then we’ll go out, get some hot cocoa, do some ice skating or whatever you want. Is that a deal?”

Lillian seemed to think about the options too. “But, what do you even need to explain now?”

“Me talking,” Napoleon answered with a gesture of his paw. “Your sister and her friends suddenly disappearing. Your sudden growing up.”

“Well, I changed my mind about it! I wanna go out and do some grown-up things! Like, like going to the movies and leaving early if I want! Picking the diner I like and get my favorite dessert! Besides, you could always explain everything next time, right?”

Matt did see her point, but still!

“Doll,” Napoleon said, “You’re the Heart of Earth. That’s why we need to discuss this immediately.”

“Sure, but I’m hungry now.” Lillian walked over to the door.

“But—” “Lillian—"

“Just for today. _Pleeeeeaaaase?_ ”

Matt didn’t know if it was because he was her Regent, or because he was a guy and he had some sense of duty, or because Lillian’s eyes were still childlike and were begging to him. He sighed and bowed before her; Napoleon followed suit.

“A-as you wish.”

“ _Yaaaay!_ ”

-=-

The Infinite City certainly lived up to its name, and Cedric hated to admit he was lost. The halls and corridors looked similar, and every single passage he took lead to even more passages. A labyrinth.

Just what was the Infinite City built for?

Cedric struggled to remember his history lessons as he traversed the maze-like hallways. Of course, it was not made by the rebels he fought, for they found the city as-is and used it to their advantage. There was a prison which emanated magical rays acting as prison bars, and those rays prevented them from using any strong magic.

It could’ve been made by the galhots in the long, long past, but there weren’t any structures barring the prison to evidence that. It could’ve been made by the mage to protect herself, but who would testify to prove that? Could’ve, could’ve, could’ve.

As he pondered on Meridianite history, Cedric arrived in a different set of halls. They were much wider, and somehow, much darker, much more mysterious.

He felt a chill along his scale. The uncertainty made him feel inappropriate to continue as a naga; in this form, he would be easily spotted. He shifted into his human form and walked cautiously. There could be potential enemies here.

His feet lead him to rows and rows of pillars that emanated purplish hazes of energy. Nether energy! The power that ruled over the realm of death and destruction, as opposed to aether that ruled over life and creation. Curious as a scholar, Cedric followed the path, his heart thumping in anticipation. There was a power source, perhaps one he could use to his advantage.

But his desires led him to an unexpected place, a place often mentioned in books, but never elaborated upon. Cedric’s jaw hung open.

“The Mausoleum of the Queens!”

The pillars lead him to the Escanors’ final resting place, which was bathed in ethereal-looking hazes of nether. Gigantic statues of every Queen guarded their closed caskets and stared upon the astonished (and perhaps scared) Cedric. Elaborate dresses draped over each casket; they were, perhaps, used for special occasions. Over each dress were crystal pendants of different colors.

Cedric inwardly cursed himself and the world. This was a peculiar way to honor the Queens, when the other nobles and commoners had burial mounds – and none of these were ever in a book. Perhaps, there were only a few select people allowed to know of the rituals?

Cedric wished no revenant would suddenly appear before him and curse him for intruding, but he felt curious about the crystals. But as he reached for one, his eyes caught something peculiar in the distance.

“…by Hael’s mercy.”

He drew closer, unable to contain his curiosity or his fear. An open, empty casket lay beneath a status of the supposedly late Queen Weira.

Cedric quickly reviewed history in his head. Phobos, as a teen, led the nobles and their army into the castle, and his mother was slain in the onslaught. The infant Elyon was rescued by her wet-nurse Galgheitta, the mage, the then-Commander Alborn, and his wife, Captain Miriadel, but Johnathan Ludmoore intercepted them. The mage was left behind to fight with him, but if she survived, then where did Ludmoore go? Who arranged for Weira’s funeral? Why didn’t her body rest in her tomb?

Cold chills went down Cedric’s skin. He quickly vacated the place in the hopes of regaining his sanity. Because, because if the previous Queen wasn’t there, then wouldn’t it mean she was… _alive?_

-=-

In the many towns of Arkhanta, one shone above them all - what was considered as the capital and a melting pot, Urdath. It was small, but it had the largest population as many are drawn to its taverns and grapes. True enough: different vine plants grew abundantly in Urdath. Many farmers, fishermen, and other workers came by this town to make their trade. It was also the town closest to the Scarlet Citadel, as well as the place Ari hailed from.

Or so Will's team came to know of simply by eavesdropping while holding onto their blue cloaks.

“So why isn’t your Kitty-cat doing that superhearing thing now?” Cornelia asked.

Will glanced at Orube, who held onto her cloak a little too tightly and covered her ears. “Err, we have to do our part of the work, too! Yeah! That’s it!” The Keeper of the Heart gestured to Hay Lin, who immediately stood next to Orube to assist her.

Cornelia huffed. “Anyway, Will, we look suspicious!”

"Welcome, strangers! And peace be with you!"

The girls turned behind them. They were greeted by an old woman with her hair in buns. Somehow, she reminded everyone of a white-haired Yan Lin, just much, much shorter (like everyone in town; everyone was short).

"I am Shawi, the head of this humble community," she introduced herself, "Please, don't be afraid, come join us!"

Will tried to find the words, but not even Taranee could say anything. These people were really nice.

"...thank you," Will blurted out.

"Sorry, was I too friendly for you?"

_Waaaaaaay too nice._ "N-no! Not at all, Miss Shawi..."

"Just Shawi is fine." The old woman took her hand and lead her to one of the quaint houses. "Now, come on. Into the taverns."

The thought of being in a tavern made the girls think of drinking alcohol. Wait!

"Uhhhh we're still too young for that!" Hay Lin said. Shawi stopped for a moment to think.

"Oh!" Shawi laughed at her mistake. "We call everything taverns, but I meant the inns! Silly me!" She chuckled. "Come now. You must be tired."

"Yeah. Thanks." Will chuckled.

Shawi lead the girls into the tavern-inn. Opening the door, they were greeted by a dozen or so cheery voices, all saying variations of “Welcome!”, “Good day!”, and “Come in!” A small yet cozy lodging, a full and warm stove, and many tanned faces wearing smiles filled their visage. A few plants decorated the simple tavern, which housed simple furniture and necessities. A very appetizing smell came from the kitchen behind the counter, that everyone could taste whatever was being cooked inside their minds.

This was the exact opposite of Ari and his citadel. Where he and his dwelling were so big and cold, his fellow farmers’ were small and warm. Like a family, Will thought, like a complete, happy family. Even the farmers felt like they were treating their guests as family. Their wide grins, their relaxed stances, their bright eyes… a happy, complete family, even made more complete by accepting total strangers with open arms.

So unlike hers.

“Don’t be a stranger now!” Shawi’s voice snapped her back to reality. “Please sit!”

Will turned around and found her companions seated at a table. Her brows creased.

“Shawi, how can we even pay—”

“Oh no, you don’t have to pay anything! Food is free for everyone!”

“Huh?”

“Less questions, more eating!” As Shawi spoke, two burly men served plates and plates of dishes to the girls. The old woman urged Will towards the chair. “Simply put, we are one big family in Urdath! Fruits and vegetables and meat and fish are available all year round, so there’s plenty of food for everyone!”

What a carefree town… Will opened her mouth, but her stomach growled as the smell of the food registered in her mind.

Oh well.

As they dug in, Will observed her friends. Irma, who was currently obsessed with their teacher and was not that focused on their mission. Cornelia, who was being very stubborn because things weren’t going her way. Taranee, who was pretty good at keeping the group together. Hay Lin, who was doing her best, and attending to the pale and sick-looking Orube. Those bandages only cover the forearm; thank goodness. But, not on the hand?

And then, Will picked up something interesting from the people talking around them.

“Did you hear about the King?”

“Yet another force wants to tear his family apart. Poor things…”

“Kandrakar must be out of its mind.”

Will lost her appetite. Right. She was working. She immediately told everyone in their mental connection to pay some attention to their surroundings.

“Fairies! They were strange fairies who questioned his wisdom!”

“Weren’t they guardians?”

“If they truly were the guardians, wouldn’t they help the King?”

“Everything good with your food?”

Will almost jumped in her seat, but she quickly regained composure. “Y-yes, Shawi. All good.”

“You look tired, dear. Don’t let your worries get to you, or you won’t be able to live as old as I am!”

Will smiled, almost feeling guilty about the fact that the man Shawi supported was an enemy to Kandrakar. “T-thanks…”

“Um, question.”

Everyone turned to Cornelia. “I only heard stories about Ari, so I have to ask, is he really as kind and wise as you people say he is?”

Shawi only laughed. “Typical of the young ones!” Some of the other patrons laughed along with her. “Very well, young girl.”

Shawi stood by the head of the table. Will looked around. Everyone was paying attention to her.

“To be honest, he is neither some wise sage, nor some kind, wealthy man! He is just a farmer, like the rest of us.” Shawi winked. “Which is why, he is worthy of such fame! He is worthy to be a leader!”

Will looked at her friends. They were just as confused as she was.

“Ari is proof that a simple person can become legendary, simply by being courageous against the evil and doing the right things. See, Arkhanta is a land filled with magic. We live in fear of the trickster faefolk, who want nothing more but to bring us misfortunes, and the cruel ones like the banshees! Banshees, children, they are the strongest of all magical creatures in this land! With bodies of flesh and ethereal souls, they stand high among the seelie and unseelie courts! They are heartless and they eat corpses before we could bury them!”

Will suddenly remembered, where was the Heart of this land? Could the banshees be protecting it?

“However, Ari managed to turn their tricks against them. In his ingenuity, he made evil bow before him; he turned an evil spirit into a creature of good! He captured Yua, the most powerful banshee there is, and in turn, drove the fae back. Now we can use the lands they once hold monopoly over. We can build more houses, plant more crops, nurture more children. Everything you see is thanks to his help. Everything you eat, you wouldn’t have eaten today if he did not accomplish what everyone before him had yet to accomplish…”

Irma placed the bread back onto her plate.

‘ _I think I lost my appetite at that_ ,’ she confessed.

‘ _I lost my appetite the time she started praising Ari_.’ Taranee offered a sympathetic smile.

“He never forgot who he was, girls.” Shawi lowered her voice. “He knew suffering, so he helped us too, who were suffering. He even exposed the quack healers! Isn’t he such a nice man? Now, we all enjoy a happy, prosperous life.”

“Except the banshee,” Cornelia chimed in.

“Now, now. It’s wrong to pity the banshee.”

“Right. That reminds me. What would happen if we freed the banshee?”

“Never talk of such a thing!” Shawi slammed a fist against the table, shocking the guardians. “That is a catastrophe! Banshees are cruel beings! When they unleash their rage, they—"

A strong wind blew doors and windows open. Patrons and staff alike clamored to close them.

“You girls ought to avoid thinking of ill omens,” Shawi said with a grim face.

The wind blew again. Shawi closed the window. “Ah, what a bad wind…”

Suddenly, the door ripped from its hinges, flying inside the inn.

**_WHOOOOOOOOSSSSHHHHHHH!!!_ **

_A whirlwind!_

Windows and doors and wagons flew aloft, and people started scrambling about. The whirlwind uprooted trees and carried part of the harvest aloft. Air, unseen, yet felt and sometimes heard, had never been this harsh or noisy!

The guardians' meal disrupted, they jumped outside.

"Great clouds of Kandrakar!" Orube screeched, still clasping to her cloak and covering her ears.

A worried Shawi followed them. "Goodness!" the elder screamed upon seeing the havoc, "What have we done to anger the Great God?"

"I dunno," Will answered, "But please, evacuate everybody!"

The Keeper of the Heart discarded her cloak and flew towards the whirlwind. "Hay Lin!" she called.

"On it!" The Guardian of Air followed suit and tried to control the whipping winds.

The astonished Shawi could only watch the other guardians remove their cloaks, and mutter, "You... are fairies?"

"More or less!" Irma laughed. "Now please move along, Ma'am, there's not much to see."

Cornelia rolled her eyes. What was everyone doing? She created a rift in the ground. "Oh yes, there _IS_ something to see, Ma'am!" she shouted, "Get everyone in the chasm!" She pointed towards the rift.

Taranee started helping the villagers and their guests down the chasm.

“Warrior!” Cornelia called and shook Orube from what seemed to be a daze, “Get everyone in the chasm!”

“I… yes!” Orube still looked sick, but she tried to do as Cornelia suggested.

Irma, meanwhile, flew upwards to see if she could help her friends.

"Be careful, Will! Hay Lin! It looks really powerful!" She gave a little shriek when the whirlwind pushed her back. "...addendum: it IS powerful!"

"I-I can't stop it!" Hay Lin screamed over the whistling winds. "It's too strong!"

"Do you reckon going into Zenith mode can help us?" Irma asked Will.

The Keeper of the Heart shook her head. "And risk never coming back to our senses? No! I won't allow it!"

"If only I could manage to move it back...!" Hay Lin glanced at them, trying with all her might to control the whirlwind, at least.

Irma wanted to fly closer, but the winds were too strong for her to go against. "Then... what do you suggest we do against a force of nature, Will?"

Truly. What could any magical creature do against the forces of the universe? Who could truly stop death or its agents?

"T-this isn't helping," Orube whispered to Taranee, "It would only temporarily protect them from the debris."

"But we don't have a choice!" the Fire Guardian reasoned.

"What are you chit-chatting about?" Cornelia asked as she handed a child down to their mother. "Hurry up!"

"The whirlwind! We have to deal with the whirlwind, Miss Cornelia!" Orube said.

Cornelia flinched at the use of her name. "Don't call me so familiarly!”

"Cornelia..." Taranee rushed to her side and attempted to soothe her. "We have to stop that first, or else everyone would lose their houses!"

"So, assuming she's right—" Cornelia gestured to Orube. "—how are we supposed to stop that thing? Do you know what to do, Taranee?" The Earth guardian turned to the warrior. "Do you, mighty warrior of Basiliade?"

Neither answered her, but someone else did.

"I'm going Zenith!" Hay Lin announced. She didn't like the idea, not when it had been a suggestion from Nerissa, who had tortured her mind and soul. Hay Lin felt like she was betraying her own self, her grandmother, but there was no way out.

"Hay Lin, no!" Will cried for her to stop, to no avail.

Hay Lin focused on her energies, letting them flow around her, within her. Reaching to the core of her power. _Finding the dragon within...UNLEASHED!_

“ ** _AIR!_** ”

The Arkhantans gasped as they watched the guardian become one with her element. But, while the whirlwind took everything with it, Hay Lin did not. Her huge form towered over Urdath as she embraced the harsh winds. She manipulated the air around her, absorbing her element – the opposite of what she’s done the first time – and soon, the whirlwind died. Debris gently landed on the ground.

All that was left was a desolate trail of destruction - houses in rubbles, trees uprooted, harvest strewn about. The loud, howling winds were replaced with loud, howling cries.

"Our homes! Our harvest! The vineyards!"

“ _HAY LIN!_ ”

The guardians rushed to their friend’s side. “Hay Lin?! Can you hear me?! Hay Lin!”

“Yo! Air Girl! Come back to earth!” Irma tried to hold her hand but felt only the soft breeze and energy. “W-what’s happened to her? Please don’t tell me she lost herself, please?!”

As for Taranee and Orube, they helped the villagers back up on their feet and on the ground. Using her powers, Cornelia lifted the chasm.

“By the fae’s might!” Shawi’s voice rang. “You saved us! You’re… good fairies!”

“You’re welcome.” Cornelia grinned. “I’m flattered you think we’re fairies.”

“But what about Hay Lin?” Will asked. “She’s not turning back!”

Taranee closed her eyes and tried to contact Hay Lin mentally. “…ugh, she’s not answering my calls!”

The girls started to panic.

All the while, Orube scouted the area. As she roved about, she found a toy top, undamaged and of great quality. She sniffed it and winced. She immediately returned to the guardians’ side to report.

“Miss Shawi,” the warrior turned to the elder. “Please do a head count. The damage is great, but—”

“What are you doing?!” Cornelia scolded. “We’re not here to look at toys! My friend might be dying and you’re just playing around!” She shoved the top away from Orube’s hands.

Offended, the warrior bared her fangs. “Do not touch me so casually! I am merely following proper protocols following a disaster!”

“Follow them later!”

“ _CUT IT OUT!_ ” Will shoved herself between the two of them. She cut to the chase and turned to Orube first. "What was it? Did you find anything strange?"

"That top!" Orube pointed to the toy, orange and green and bright. Irma picked it up for them.

"It looks like it doesn't belong here…” the Water Guardian muttered.

"Let me see," Shawi offered and held out her hand. She examined the little toy between her fingers, running them over its shape. "...yes, it is of high quality, one that we would consider a rarity here in Arkhanta! And all who I can imagine owning this is our lord, Ari!" She immediately tossed it back, perhaps in horror. Irma caught it again.

"But why would it be here?"

"Why?" Cornelia approached them with a scowl. "I don't know, but we're here and you gave us shelter. Maybe that's why he sent that whirlwind. He wanted to destroy us, and he didn’t think twice about getting you into this mess!”

"But—"

“They’re the guardians!”

A man screamed, pointing to the girls. “They’re the guardians, Shawi!”

Wil looked around; terror filled every villager’s face. Horror turned to rage, and rage called for escape. The villagers picked up their tools and held them like weapons.

“I heard the girl say they’re from Kandrakar!”

“They must’ve summoned the whirlwind to trick us!”

“We fed you!” Shawi screamed, “And this is what you do to us?! You horrible, horrible agents of Kandrakar!”

It was time to run. Again.

-=-

It was time for her to run along, and Elyon had to admit: the treaty had been for naught.

After she heard the bigger town’s side of the story, she knew that she had been wrong, and that the document she drafted up for the sake of peace was obsolete. Caesar was more or less correct about the overcrowding, and the neighboring towns had been more or less fine with their territories decreasing.

Elyon locked herself inside Caesar’s house and refused to see anyone. She was looking to be a bad queen to the whole of Meridian, and this was just one, two towns!

“Your _Gra~ce_?” came a singsong voice with several loud knocks. “Might I interest you with a story?”

“No! Go away!” Elyon yelled, her face buried in his pillow.

“Your _Gra~ce_ , I can’t make tea if I’m not _insi~de_!”

“Leave! This is an order from your queen!”

She heard shuffling from outside. Murmurings, whispering. ‘ _What a bratty queen…_ ’

Elyon brought the pillow over her head and around her ears, but the window next to her opened.

“Aaah!” she squealed as she fell off the bed.

“Your Grace! Forgive me!” Caesar jumped in and assisted her, rubbing her head. “Please be all right. I didn’t mean to frighten you, I only wanted to offer a little something as a friend.”

Elyon scowled at him. “Don’t scare me!”

But he only smiled. “I won’t, if next time you would let me console you.”

Elyon pouted as he left to make his tea. She followed him into the kitchen area and sat on the table.

“I’m a mess, aren’t I?”

“It’s never too late to make it right.”

Never too late. Elyon’s mind drifted back to the time when she was a child and her mother taught her how to use an eraser. She’d been really upset and she drew herself as a sad fairy. But, with the magic of an eraser and her mother’s words, she became a happy fairy. Elyon could no longer remember what she was so sad about, but she still remembered that very moment, and her mother’s words: ‘If you make a mistake, you can always erase it and make it right the next time!’

She smiled at Caesar’s words, too.

“Ain’t I right?” he followed, mirroring her smile.

“Yeah. You are.” Elyon sighed. “Guess I just… I just need to work harder. Be more careful.”

“Yes. You do.”

Caesar handed her a mug and sat. “Well?”

Elyon’s eyes widened. Eh?

“Aren’t you going to tell me anything?”

She huffed her cheeks. “Oooohhh no! Not until you tell me what you wanted to give me!”

“I already gave you some tea?” Caesar laughed.

“So you mean I was expecting nothing?!”

“Alright, alright!” He set his own mug of tea on the table. “Let’s see… if I teach you a little song, will you tell me what happened?”

“Besides what you already thought would happen?” Elyon crossed her arms. “I can’t possibly tell you any more of the embarrassment I went through!”

“Yes, yes, my apologies.” Caesar placed a hand to his chin.

“But what’s the song? Why would that be a good equivalent to my embarrassment?”

Caesar’s smile should never get any sweeter, but it did, and Elyon felt so much at ease next to him. “It’s a good luck charm, so to say. My father used to sing it for Mother, and when he was still practicing it, he practiced every single day, everybody practically learned it.”

“Oooohhh! Well, what happened to them?”

His smile faded, and something pooled in his eyes. “Well, they did love each other very much, but… as you’re very familiar with, things don’t always, always go your way… like with your little mistake of coming here unprepared—”

“ _Hey!_ ”

Elyon jumped from the table to softly beat Caesar on the side. He, in turn, tried to tickle her. She swirled about, and his hands caught her. By the end, she was sitting on the table, he was lying on the floor, and they were both laughing.

“You know, I wish I could’ve had you as a brother, Caesar!”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Your Grace. I’m happy enough as it is!”

“What? You don’t need an embarrassing sister to tease you about embarrassments and crushes?”

“Crushes, huh?”

Elyon gazed up the ceiling. She remembered that one boy she had a disastrous date with, Cedric, Cornelia… “Yeah. The people you like so, so much! Well, it’s fun while it lasts…” That boy whose name escaped her now… Cedric… “They never really last that long.” She turned to Caesar. “So, do you have anyone you like?”

“Oh, if you mean the romantic way, I’m afraid I don’t feel such a thing.” Caesar shook his head.

“Huh?” Elyon’s eyes widened in shock. “Really? How so?”

“It’s just a thing!” He shrugged. “Some people have these crushes… some don’t. Simple as that.”

“Oh, okay… well, in where I used to be, we called those people aromantic. Does that help?”

“Aromantic, huh? I like the sound of that. Aromantic. It’s such a lovely word. I think I’d like to use that. Thank you.”

Elyon shrugged. “It’s nothing! Um, so… the song.”

“Of course. As Your Grace wishes.”

Elyon closed her eyes and listened to Caesar’s gentle voice. Flowers bloomed in the meadow. The wind blew, and the grass tickled her feet. From afar, her mother called her, beckoning her towards freshly-baked cookies. She jumped and took Cornelia’s hand, and they ran to grab the hot cookies that warmed their hands and their stomachs. Her fingers ached for some charcoal.

In a way, Elyon could imagine her mother humming the same melody as Caesar was—

Actually, maybe that’s it. The notes did remind her of Miriadel, because Miriadel would sing a similar melody. Weird.

Elyon shrugged off the thought and tried to return to her imagination. There’s a lot of songs in the world. It won’t be too weird if some songs share similar melodies.

As she relaxed even more, she turned to Caesar, who was simply enjoying himself singing the song and humming the tune. “Um, thanks. I think I should get back to the castle.” Thinking of Miriadel made Elyon want to go back home and talk to her mom.

Caesar nodded. “As Your Grace wishes.”

-=-

Lillian got her hot chocolate, her favorite dessert, and her preferred movie in DVD, and Matt and Napoleon got dragged all around Heatherfield for the trouble.

“Where’s Huggles again?” Napoleon moaned, having draped himself around Matt’s neck in fatigue.

“With my Mom…” Matt answered, “She said I tour him around town too much so it was time for a… stay-in.”

“Lucky.”

Matt caught up to the Heart of Earth, who was skipping about ahead of them. “So, Lillian, we done yet?”

Lillian turned to him as they approached the weekend bazaar. Oh no. _Oh no._

“Nooope!”

“Ugh.” Shopping.

“Aww, don’t be like that!” Lillian giggled and spun. “It’s almost Valentine’s! You gotta get a present for Will, right?”

Valentine’s? It was already Valentine’s?

“Napoleon, what date is it?” Matt turned to the familiar.

“February 13, why?”

“Seriously?” Oh no!

“Oh, no!” Lillian grabbed Matt’s arm and dragged him to a souvenir booth. “You gotta get shopping now! Come on!”

Matt sighed. Last year, he didn’t get anything for Will at all, not when their relationship was still in its first stages. If he waltzed in the Vandom’s with chocolate and a bouquet of roses, he’d be trying too hard.

…hey, this meant this was their first Valentine’s together!

“Alright, Lillian.” Matt smiled. “I’ll let you pick a gift with me. What’s the catch?”

When Lillian turned her head, Matt gritted his teeth in distaste. Her face was badly smeared with makeup all over!

“I dunno…”

“Ugh, if you wanted to wear makeup, you could’ve just asked me!” Matt took his handkerchief and began to wipe Lillian’s face of makeup as much as he could.

“Why would a boy like you even know?”

“Band appearances require me to wear makeup. Sweat reflects light and that doesn’t look good on camera.”

“Seriously?” Lillian’s eyes went wide.

Matt grinned, feeling a little sheepish. “Yeah. Even VMJ does it… I bet.”

“Woooaaaah!”

Matt stood back, satisfied with his little clean-up. At least Lillian didn’t look like a clown anymore.

“Um, so will you help me pick a gift for Will?” Matt blushed. “It’s our first Valentine’s together, and I think a second opinion could help.”

“Why don’t you get a second opinion from _me?_ ” Napoleon whispered, but Matt ignored him.

Lillian twirled around. “Hm, I don’t know, Matt. I mean, I am a little girl after all. What do grown-up girls like, besides clothes and makeup and dolls?”

Matt scratched his head. Of course; these were Cornelia’s tastes Lillian was talking about! “Uh, what do you little girls like?”

“Pretty little dolls and cute skirts!”

A skirt, maybe? No, no, no. Will wasn’t entirely the skirt type, nor was he sure of her size. He’d seem… imposing.

“This is rather difficult,” he murmured.

“Try offering her something?” Napoleon suggested, “Roses? Food? Song?”

…yeah. Why not? Matt was good at writing songs (but, for tomorrow?!) and he was good at singing them (yeah, sure, but for tomorrow!).

“Oh, look, Matt!”

Lillian dragged Matt out of his thoughts and towards a poster. Matt squinted his eyes as he read the details.

“Charity concert by VMJ tomorrow night. Free admissions, no reservation required,” Lillian read out loud, “You two can go together! On a daaaaate!”

“Hey!” Matt blushed from ear to ear.

“Matt and Will on a daa-aate! Matt and Will on a daaa-aaate!”

Lillian danced around him, laughing and singing. Matt could only try to hide his flushed face, in vain.

“O-okay, fine! We’re going on a date!” And if he couldn’t perfect a song for her by tomorrow, it can be simply a special poem.

The plan was secured. All he needed to do was ask Will out and get Mrs. Vandom’s approval.

“Soooo.” Lillian pursed her lips. “Why can Napoleon talk again?”

Matt gulped. The Heart of Earth finally regained her interest in the subject, but they were now surrounded by people. Children really do immediately get bored.

“Can we, uh, go aside first?”

He pulled her aside and glanced around.

“Actually, you can make it so that we won’t be seen or heard,” Napoleon advised.

Lillian’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Just concentrate and wish really hard.”

She closed her eyes and whispered, “I wish we won’t be seen or heard!”

In an instant, the three were enveloped in energy swirling in green. Lillian opened her eyes, but scowled.

“I can still see me!” she complained.

“No worries; we are now invisible to everyone but ourselves.” Napoleon left Matt’s shoulders and transformed into his bigger form.

“Wooooaaaahhh!” Lillian gasped. “Since when were you able to do that, Napoleon?!”

“Since you granted me, Matt, and Huggles your powers.” Napoleon smiled and bowed before her. “But I am above them. I am your familiar, as your heart desired it.”

“That’s so cool!”

Matt smiled. He thought that Napoleon’s form would’ve scared off Lillian, but perhaps, she was much braver than he thought she was. Or perhaps, this was another one of those Heart of Earth things. He could be wrong.

“So, what about Matt?” Lillian pointed at him. “Is he my Knight?”

Something from Matt’s guts tried to release itself, but he pushed it down and swallowed hard. “N-no. Not a… a knight. I’m… your regent. Just a regent.”

“Yeah, whatever. So, does Will know about you? Are you her Knight instead?! Is she secretly a princess and they’re out to beat some evil king?! Did you battle for her love?!”

Matt and Napoleon shared sheepish smiles. Those ideas were far off the mark.

Napoleon stood aside and gestured to Matt. “Well, I give the floor to Matthew Olsen.”

Matt gave Lillian a quick run-down of the girls’ adventure. He mentioned Phobos and Cedric and Elyon. He mentioned Kandrakar and the guardian system. He quickly brushed on Nerissa’s part, not wishing to visit the bad parts that got him involved in the magical world rather personally.

However, Lillian’s questioning was never-ending, to a point she quickly gained control of the conversation. He began to walk away to deter her asking, but she only followed him, still absorbed in her imagination.

“I’m her sister anyway. Do you think I can borrow Cornelia’s place in the team for a while? I think I can do it! Look at me, I can even act like her!” Lillian pulled a serious face and flipped her hair.

“I don’t think it works that way.” Matt began to walk back to Mrs. Rudolph’s house.

“Oh, oh! We could ask the _Orabell_ —”

“ _Oracle_ , Doll,” Napoleon corrected. Still in his bigger form, he’d been following them around on two feet.

“—if I can be a guardian on my own! And I’ll control… uh… I don’t know! Whatever’s there! Oh, puh- _lease_ Mr. Ora _bell_ —”

“Oracle.”

“—could you make me a guardian? It’s just for a day! Hm… should I be wearing a pink dress, or a green dress? But, green is so Cornelia! …okay, a pink dress it is!”

Lillian ran and caught up with Matt. “Hey! Why don’t I just wish for it?!”

“Careful, Doll!” Napoleon warned, “If your wish messes up with the world’s balance, there’ll be so much to pay!”

Lillian slumped against a wall. “Aww, then what can I do to have some adventures like you do? I mean, all these powers but I can’t do anything at all?”

Matt frowned. He’d rather not thinking of the Nerissa part as adventure or his powers as a blessing. Placing those on the level of Will’s own adventures made it harder to breathe. “N-no. You don’t want that. At all. Please.”

“Why do you guys always have to have the cool parts?!” Lillian frowned.

“Hey, Doll.” Napoleon approached his master. “All these powers we and Huggles have? They’ll be yours again when you grow up. You’ll get your cool parts soon, I promise.”

“When?!”

“When you’re older, and when the world needs you.”

“And,” Matt added, “It’s difficult. We’ve had this secret for so long now, but none of our parents know! Not even _your_ parents know about you or Cornelia. Not even my family… when I.. disappeared…” He took a few deep breaths, trying to breath. “…it’s hard being quiet. You want to tell them how it… hurts. You want to ask for help, but what can they do about… strong, evil powers?”

Matt tried to smile and felt Napoleon’s paw on his shoulder. The boy shrugged and watched Lillian’s initial enthusiasm fade from her eyes.

“…so, I can’t?”

“No.” Matt took her hands. “And I hope those things never, ever happen to you. Not those horrible, horrible things. Adventure comes with both fun and not fun things.”

He squeezed her hands, and she nodded. Matt shared a knowing smile with Napoleon.

“Let’s go back to Mrs. Rudolph’s, okay?”

“Okay…”

As they walked hand-in-hand, Lillian’s magic wore off. The green glow vanished, and she was a little girl again. She stopped, tugging Matt.

“Matt?”

“Yeah?”

“Could you… could you keep this a secret? My… my growing up, I mean…”

Matt nodded and hugged her. “Of course. As you wish, Lillian.”

-=-

With a bit of difficulty, they managed to pull Hay Lin through the fold to Kandrakar. Will could see the look of disapproval on the elder’s faces until they saw Hay Lin.

“Hay Lin!” the former guardians cried.

“What happened?” Hallinor asked. “Is this… is she in Zenith mode?”

“This is dreadful…” Kadma muttered.

Hallinor turned to Taranee. “Come on. Let’s try to call her from within.”

Taranee nodded, and the two of them went into deep concentration.

Will bowed before the confused elders. “I’m sorry. It was my fault. I took everyone there, but Ari, he…”

“We got a whole village involved in this mess!” Cornelia said. “Why are we still the ones assigned to this petty task? Why can’t you just give the man what he wants?”

Luba frowned. “Once again, we cannot let arrogance command us!”

“By the way, your student’s been playing around again.”

Orube flinched. “I was following protocol—”

“You were totally useless at the beginning! You were acting all sick!”

The warrior shied away, retreating to Luba’s side. “I-I don’t do well with crowds…”

“That’s not an excuse!”

“Quiet, all of you!” Will shouted.

“I’m not yet done!” Cornelia turned to her.

“Stop acting like you’re the leader!”

“And stop neglecting your duties as leader!”

Their hands glowed with elemental energy.

“You’re really getting on my nerves, _Cornelia Hale_.”

“So are you, _Wilhelmina_. You’ve been a big bitch about not properly educating your alley cat.”

“I was once a new girl, too. I’m not going to let her feel alienated.”

“Well, let her be, else how would she know her place? We’re a team, remember?”

“And as a team member, you too, you need to know your place.”

Thorns grew around Cornelia’s hair; lightning sparked around Will’s head.

“ _STOP!_ ” Tibor shouted. “Have you taken leave of your senses? This is a place of peace and harmony!”

The elder shoved them away from each other. The two girls turned away from each other, crossing their arms. The Oracle shook his head.

“We must retain our vigilance and our patience. Ari grows more hateful and ambitious with each passing day,” he announced, “And if his banshee can extend her power to things she did not make herself… this is rather worrying.”

Just then, the air around Hay Lin dissipated, and her form fell to the ground. Irma and Kadma assisted her.

“W-what happened…?” she whispered, weak and drained of her energy.

“Oh, thank goodness.” Irma hugged her friend.

“Rest well, guardians,” Himerish said, “Then you may return to Arkhanta the next time, and—”

Taranee stomped. “With all due respect, Sir! Our lives are not just about Kandrakar! We’ve done nothing but go with the flow all this time! We’ve done everything, but you’ve done us nothing!”

The guardians, even the former ones, were speechless. Their minds took them back to their tasks, to their missions, to their battles…

Kandrakar wasn’t really ever there. It might’ve provided wisdom; it might’ve provided shelter. But Kandrakar, supposedly ranking above the guardians, hadn’t really lifted a finger when Phobos took over and his power grew, threatening the other worlds, or when Elyon was manipulated into working for his side, into hurting her friends, or when Nerissa lost to the thirst for power. It’s done nothing until Will had a plan. It’s done nothing for Cassidy, either.

“B-because… because that is your fate,” Luba tried to explain.

“That doesn’t mean we can’t choose! We’ve risked our necks for Elyon. We’ve risked our necks for the world. We even got Matt and Huggles and Napoleon into this mess! Aren’t you the least bit ashamed? All this time we were fighting, you were just here in the comfort of this… this _damned_ fortress!”

“We watch over you girls, and I watch over your Aurameres. Without me, your powers would’ve mixed up and give birth to a superguardian whose powers we cannot control!”

“That’s it? That’s why you just stand here and do your ‘watching over’? To control us?!”

Kadma bit her lip. “…in a way, that… that is right.”

Taranee huffed. “So we’re Kandrakar’s little puppets, is that it?!”

The Oracle’s face crumpled. “…there is nothing wrong with the workings of Kandrakar. This is simply a system to maintain the order of all things—”

“In which we don’t have a choice at all! Fine. Count me out; consider me as a none-guardian!”

Taranee de-transformed and everyone gasped.

“Taranee!”

“Taranee, you’re…” Cornelia gulped. She agreed with most of this. “You’re right…”

“But we can’t do this without you, Taranee,” Will said, ignoring Cornelia’s glare. “Please, don’t leave?”

“I’m sorry, Will.” Taranee took a few steps back from Will. “I, I’m tired of this. I don’t want to be special anymore if being special is all I have to be all the time. I just want a normal teenage life again. And right now, all I want, is to go home!”

As if it heard her, the Heart shone and brought a fold over their heads. In an instant, they were brought back to Earth, back to Mrs. Rudolph’s house, and right in front of a sleeping Lillian who was somehow sporting makeup and two tired-looking regents.

“Please excuse me.”

Orube’s voice cut through and she ran upstairs. Will tried to follow her, but Matt reached for her.

“We need to talk. About Lillian,” he said.

Will gazed upstairs, then back at Matt. “Yeah?”

“Um, Heart of Earth business.” He sighed. “When are we supposed to tell her about… everything?”

“When she’s ready,” Taranee answered, stomping towards the door. Everyone turned to her as she grabbed her bag. “We don’t need any more unprepared kids heading into a world of the unknown, without any knowledge of what she’s really doing, and not when she’d be charging into a place risking her life and everyone’s for nothing.”

Cornelia hurriedly took her sister into her arms and rushed after Taranee. “Um, see you guys,” she whispered.

The two left, and Irma and Hay Lin flopped against the couch.

“Today’s a disaster, isn’t it?” Will breathed out, and sank into an armchair. Irma handed her the top from Arkhanta, and Will gazed into the toy. “A real disaster.”

“So… we just almost lost Hay Lin forever, but now… now we lost Taranee from the team?”

“…we did.”

Matt gritted his teeth.

“That’s worrisome,” Napoleon said, and Will couldn’t agree more.

“So what will we do with Orube?” Irma asked.

Remembering the bandages, Will groaned and shut her eyes. “I don’t want to think. Just let me rest for a bit, will you?”

Irma nodded and rested her head against the backrest. Matt shuffled about and stood in front of Will.

“Um, one more thing, Will.”

Will’s eyes lazily gazed up at Matt. “…what?”

“There’s a concert tomorrow night and it’s free. Wanna go?”

“…why not? I could use the distraction.”

-=-

“So, what’s up?” Cornelia asked Taranee as they walked to the bus stop. “What’s going on? What made you… do that?”

“I’m taking control of my life, that’s all.”

“Were you… serious about quitting?”

Taranee frowned. _Unleash the fire within_ , her mind recalled. “It’s just… break even. I gain my dancing hobby back, but in return I have to give up my guardian life.” She tried to smile. “Besides, I don’t think my mom would want me to divide my time further.”

“Well, you are right…” Cornelia adjusted her hold on the sleeping Lillian. “I guess it would be difficult to do things once I start modelling big time.”

“But at least you have time before anything big happens. Last I heard, it’s difficult to build a career there.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Cornelia grinned. “I mean, when I was still active in skating, I did receive a few modeling offers here and there…”

“And what happened to that?”

“Well, they were just small stuff and my name isn’t really that big! The Hale Bankers are more well-known than Cornelia Hale the ice skater… but I know I have some connections in there, somewhere. I just don’t know who.”

The bus arrived, and the girls went inside.

“Even so, I’m gonna sweep the floor!”

“That’s the spirit!”

They sat at the back, and the bus moved. Taranee found a familiar van turn to the other direction, but she wasn’t sure where she saw it.

“Sooo,” Cornelia asked, “You mentioned this dancing… hobby?”

“Yeah. I used to dance.” Taranee smiled, a little shy. “Competitively.”

“Woah.”

“My group won in Sesamo, but it’s really nothing big. I didn’t even receive my part of prize.”

Taranee looked away and gazed into the window. Fire appeared in her reflections’ eyes. “But I’m gonna get that all back now.”

“…good luck.” Cornelia placed a hand on her friend’s shoulder. “I’m sure this will be a more fun adventure than the universe.”

“Thanks.” Taranee took Cornelia’s hand with a warm smile. “I know I could count on you.”

Cornelia mirrored her smile. “I hope your mom agrees.”

“If she won’t, I have to make her.”

“Not guardian-style, I suppose.”

“Of course not!”

-=-

After the short briefing, Caleb found himself outside a simple-looking house, in a small, quiet little town, one considered to be the farthest from the castle. He, Aldarn, and a team they formed surrounded the seemingly humble dwelling.

“Vaal’s hideout,” Caleb whispered, “Is awfully cozy.”

“Yeah, and he’s supposedly up and about after a nap,” Aldarn whispered back.

The door opened, and out came a small green figure, no taller than a child. Caleb underestimated Phobos’ words and the artist’s sketch; if this was Vaal, he did look like mold. The mysterious noble had no neck, his nose was small, and his eyes were droopy. His grim expression accentuated his “moldiness” even more.

He walked around to shove snow out of the pathway, like it said on the report.

“Alright. Move out.”

The men sprung to action. The surprised Vaal gasped, but he made no move to escape to his house or into the streets. He only held his short arms up and asked, “F-for what do you gentlemen need me?”

“Vaal the Useless?” Caleb asked.

“Yes, Good Sir?”

“We are here to arrest you, on the account of supporting Phobos’ cause and embezzling taxes.” Caleb motioned for his men to secure Vaal’s four-fingered hands. “Care to explain a few things for us?”

Vaal’s face returned to its moldiness—err, grimness. “…s-sure, as you say so…”

Caleb smirked. How good of Vaal to be so cooperative. When he’d return to the castle, he’d get right down to questioning this guy. Get the job done, and he’ll soon get to the fun.

-=-

Cedric supposed he wasn’t human, not completely, but his humanly body still had hairs standing on their ends, when he safely reached a portion of the castle connected to the Mausoleum. He took a deep breath as he walked as fast as he could. He had to forget; what he saw was not his concern or his goal. The dead could never return to the living, and he was a naga out for vengeance.

“Hey! You!”

Cedric locked eyes with a guard, and the naga ambushed the surprised human. Bah. Humans would never match up to his strength, and the guard dropped unconscious on the floor.

Yes. His goal was to escape, and to not alert the rest of the castle until he’d done so.

He met at least a dozen more guards before he reached a place more familiar to him – a treasury. But, this treasury was far more important than the other treasuries; this was the room that housed most of the handheld magical objects of the kingdom.

Cedric grinned as he found the Mage Ring. He placed it on his finger and scanned the room. A book with two dragons on the cover stood on a pedestal; a green star-like pendant on another. No, he did not need either of them.

He opened a fold to Earth and, finally, he made his escape.

Time to plan his revenge.

-=-

Orube locked herself in her room and covered her ears, but she could still hear. She heard it all, she heard all of them wish to not speak about her or her dismal performance, or how she suddenly feared being in the middle of a crowd, how she suddenly couldn’t do what she was meant to do. She heard them leave her house and mention her once; she heard them say that they didn’t want to think about her.

She punched the sheets. All her training, and it was useless, all useless! What use was being a protégé student of Kandrakar when she could not get along with its guardians, or even understand their protocols?

She stared at her hands. They were strong, they could hold onto a sword perfectly, and they could lift. They could do so many things.

So why? Why were they so useless?! Why, of all things she couldn’t do, couldn’t she be helpful?

Orube slapped herself with one hand, then the other. Then another slap. Another, another. Another. No, no, no. This was enough. She couldn’t let the others see.

She slapped her arms. She scratched through the bandages that already had bruises and claw marks; she scratched the skin and drew blood. If she broke her bones, would that be sufficient to make up for everything? But she couldn’t feel anything beyond shame, beyond disappointment and failure. She couldn’t feel. She needed to feel.

The horizon had gotten dark when she found herself filled with claw marks and bruises once more. Orube tried to laugh, but all she did was cry, squeeze her flesh, and watch the blood ooze into the white of the bandages. _Pretty…_ but what did it do when she still couldn’t feel anything beyond the horrible shame and dishonor?

Why, oh why, was she such a stupid, stupid, useless child?


	5. Between Two Worlds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Recap:** In Meridian, Caleb hunts down Vaal the Useless, while Elyon, though the treaty failed, ends the trip with a warm heart thanks to Caesar's words. Cedric makes his escape, finds the tombs of the Queens, and steals the Mage Ring.
> 
> In Heatherfield, Lillian's powers grow and Matt lets her in on the secret regarding guardianhood and the Heart of Earth affairs.
> 
> In Arkhanta, the girls try a different approach by infiltrating the town of Urdath. However, Ari's misaimed rage towards his son unleashes a whirlwind on Urdath using a toy top. Hay Lin uses Zenith mode to battle the whirlwind, and Cornelia's worry turns to frustration on Orube.
> 
> Kandrakar wishes for the girls to immediately to Arkhanta. Taranee protests against this and expresses her wish to quit. Orube finds shame in her failure.

"Happy Valentine's, sweetie."

Will jumped awake at her mother’s morning greeting. It was Valentine's Day already?! She barely had time to register it, as her mother presented her a new stuffed frog and a breakfast filled with their favorite breakfast items.

"Uh, gee. Thanks, Mom. I..." Will bit her lip. She hadn't gotten anything for her mom, not with her magical preoccupations. "I... I'm not yet late, am I?"

"Of course, not! It's still pretty early. But for one, I am glad I can wake you up early just fine."

“Come on, Mom!”

The Vandom ladies sat in their table and began to eat. Will had never felt any more ashamed before this day. Her mother went all out with their little celebration, and Will struggled to enjoy every bite.

"So... what's up, honey?"

Will's eyes slowly turned towards Susan. "Y-yeah?"

"I know you've been hiding something again. Lately, you always seem... troubled. Worried." Susan frowned. "Please. Let me help."

Will bit the insides of her cheeks. How could she tell Susan anything that's been happening? What would her mother think about Thomas' remarriage? And, no doubt, Susan would hate to know about the guardian affair.

"I... uh..." Will struggled to remember something. Anything. "Um, Matt asked me out... for tonight."

"Well, isn't that great?" Susan managed to smile. "But won't you minimize your going out already? Your grades barely make it!"

Bad topic! Change topic! "T-that's why we're doing group studies lately! Haha! A-and... uh..." Change topics, Will Vandom! "Cornelia and I... we're not doing so great. We have this, uh, new friend, but Cornelia doesn't like her."

Susan seemed to have accepted the changing of topics. "Really? Do you like your new friend?"

"I..." Orube, the weirdo, who suddenly had bandages on her arms. Will hadn't been able to predict her behavior at all, and even if they've known each other for a few days, Will still couldn't form any solid opinion of the warrior. "I'm not so sure."

"How about Irma and the others?"

"I don't really know, but Irma's been focused on her crush on Mr. Sylla, Hay Lin's been a bit out of the loop but she seems friendly with, uh… with _Rebecca_ , and Taranee..." Taranee just quit being a guardian so there's now only four of them. "Things aren't so great with Taranee either."

"Did you girls have a fight?"

"N-no! It was only between Cornelia and me!"

"Over your new friend, Rebecca?"

Heck, no! "...well, things are a bit more complicated than that."

Susan sighed. "Well. I guess it's just because, maybe... maybe it's time for you girls to branch out and be friends with other people, too."

Will almost choked on her food. "W-what?"

"See, you girls always hang out with each other. Don't you have other friends beyond them and your new friend? Why don't you give space to each other for now and hang out with other people? You five are always together, always going out during inconvenient times of the day, and nobody even knows what you've been up to."

Will frowned. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, and she didn't like it at all. It sounded like her mother was trying to tell her that guardianhood was a big, bad influence on her life and her grades. Will couldn't deny it did impact her performance, but it just... hurt.

"Hey, princess..." Susan placed a hand on Will's shoulder. "You're never sure of what will happen to you five in the future. I'm just saying... if they move away, what will happen to you? If you end up breaking apart, who will be there to be your crying shoulder? I won't be alive forever, Will."

"I don't really know, Mom." Will couldn't deny that either. She didn't have friends beyond WITCH, Matt, and the Regents, maybe Mandy, Alchemy, Martin, Eric, Nigel, Joel, and Peter, but it wasn't like she hanged out with them as much as she did with the guardians and Matt. "I've been with them since... day one in Heatherfield."

"It's going to be difficult, and it's going to hurt. But it will hurt less if you act on it now."

Will smiled. Her mother was just trying to help, she reminded herself, but she just felt that this wasn’t entirely right.

“On the other hand, you could try to look at Cornelia’s side of the things! Or maybe Taranee’s. Maybe they’re frustrated because you don’t really understand what they feel about… whatever you’re fighting over.”

“Okay. Thanks, mom.”

Will may not totally agree with everything, but the talk helped her unwind a little. She really, really owed her mom some quality time and a gift now.

She clenched her fists. Oh… the girls did badly need some time off Kandrakar, and she should've protested that from the very beginning. And she'd tell Himerish during lunch break, whether he liked it or not.

-=-

Whether he liked it or not, Caleb had to spend the cold, cold night searching all over the kingdom for Lord Cedric. Phobos' minions truly didn't know what giving up meant, and Caleb surely underestimated everything about taking charge.

The army ran around the prison, the Infinite City, the castle, and the surrounding cities, but nobody saw the naga. A handful of guards reported to have seen him, but they were knocked unconscious before they could question him.

It wasn't until the break of dawn when Alborn paid a visit to the magical treasury in search of something for the Queen, and discovered the Mage Ring was lost. With no other evidences to hold onto, Caleb declared Lord Cedric's escape successful, with the Mage Ring's disappearance being an unfortunate collateral damage.

"And we don't know where he went!" Caleb slammed the table. "He could be somewhere in Meridian planning his revenge! He could be in Heatherfield looking for the guardians!"

"Oooh!" Blunk appeared from a stash of papers in the office. "Blunk search for snake monster! Blunk do everything for friend!"

"Thanks, Blunk." Caleb sighed and reclined in his seat. "Why didn't I think of that?"

"Hey, take it easy." Aldarn reached over and forced Caleb to sit properly. "We can't solve every single problem in the world in a single day."

"But why on earth does he have to do it when I should be busy interrogating Vaal the Useless?!"

"We don't know what everyone's thinking. Now calm down and use your head. Do you want to go with Blunk in search of Lord Cedric, or do you want to stay and interrogate Vaal?"

Caleb grimaced. "I'll go look for the snake. Besides, Vaal doesn't look too much of a threat. He can't do anything, and he's not even putting up any sort of resistance."

Indeed. The prison shuffled so the army could investigate what happened to Lord Cedric's cell. Phobos made a big fuss out of it, but Queen Elyon had arrived that afternoon and helped in moving him to his new cell.

_Ugh._

Speaking of the Queen, Elyon seemed a little happier than she should be. She wasn't too worried over the failure of the treaty or Lord Cedric's escape.

Caleb decided to pay her a visit before he and Blunk departed. Partly, it was out of curiosity; partly, it was because he know he deserved some sort of punishment.

But, Elyon was just too happy.

"Hey, Caleb!" she greeted, "Do you know what day it is?"

"...no, your Majesty." Caleb frowned. "But I know I deserve punishment for letting Lord Cedric escape."

Elyon pouted. "Yeah... it's a real downer he's gone... again... but I don't really think he's that big of a threat all by himself. And, besides, I could always count on you to bring him back here, and as I was saying, today's a very special day. I can't let him ruin it."

"Ruin what?"

"Valentine's!"

Valentine's. The name was familiar. What was it all about?

"It's the day of love, Caleb!" Elyon took his hands and danced (swung) around. "You should totally go see Cornelia!"

"I-I...!" A day of love? For the Earthlings?! Which meant... he didn't prepare anything at all! "But, Kandrakar... the Oracle...!"

"Well, tell them I sent you!" Elyon released his hands and opened a fold. "You really should go. I don't want to hear how Cornelia's boyfriend broke her heart on Valentine's just because some bigwig wanted you to not go to Earth or something."

Caleb hesitated. If he went to Heatherfield now, then what about Lord Cedric? Lord Cedric was top priority, but... Cornelia...

"Come on." Elyon placed her hands on her hips. "If Cedric shows up here, I can easily beat him. If he shows up in Heatherfield, you can just find the girls and tell them."

Just then, the doors to the throne room opened, and in came Aldarn and Blunk.

"Blunk says that Lord Cedric's trail disappeared!" Aldarn announced, "There's a high chance he's in Earth now!"

Caleb smiled. He'd hit two birds with one stone, but he had to make it quick.

With Blunk tailing after him, Caleb jumped into the fold.

-=-

Every teen was chasing down their crushes and partners when Taranee arrived in school. She almost forgot about Valentine's, but she had nothing to worry about, as she'd been prepared since the start of the month. She and Nigel met at the entrance and shared a heart-shaped candy. And, oh, how cute. Nigel even gave her a little teddy bear with it.

"You're so sweet." She giggled. "How did I even survive Valentine's without you?"

"Well, I plan on spending every Valentine's with you from here on out." He winked. "If your mom's okay with that."

"I don't know about my mom, but I'm a-okay with that!"

Taranee wrapped her arms around him, and behind him... behind him were his former friends, Kurt and Laurent. Taranee stuck her tongue out at them. _He's mine and you can't change that!_

But, instead of glaring back at her, they stared at her rather awkwardly before hurrying into the school.

"...what's up with Uriah's goons?"

"Uh, the Dunnsters are over," Nigel answered for her as they pulled away. "Uriah's... well, Uriah's been extra.. bad."

"Why am I not aware of this?"

"I didn't know until Kurt told me yesterday, either."

The couple then bumped into a very excited Cornelia. They assumed it was about her boyfriend, but she'd been raving about her modelling soon-to-be-career.

"I have an open call later tonight!" she announced.

"Congratulations!" Taranee smiled.

"What's an open call?" Nigel asked.

Cornelia flipped her hair. "That means some agency wants some models, and I gotta go audition!"

"On Valentine's? But, don't you have a boyfriend?"

Cornelia's enthusiasm died down. Her shoulders slumped and her lips curved into a frown. "Well... he can't make it today. I don't know when we'll be able to see each other again."

"Yikes. But if you're gonna be a model, he'll see you on every billboard, right?"

Taranee laughed. "Uh, it doesn't work that way." Because Caleb was in another planet! "Um, Cornelia's still got to work her way up!"

"Yeah. The ones you see in billboards are the ones who's survived so many open calls and rejections before," Cornelia added, "And... I don't know. He's a little too busy."

Nigel raised his eyebrow. "Too busy even for a call or an e-mail?"

"...yeah."

Yeah. Let's just say that.

The bell rang and in went the students.

So far, it's been an ordinary school day. Despite the, err, "holiday", Professor Mitridge was still (heartlessly) holding recitation in her Physics Class. Irma was restless in her seat as she waited for Computer Class with Sylla; Hay Lin and Eric just missed each other in the entrance and she couldn't wait for lunch break. Despite their busy schedules as guardians and students, they still had time for love. How precious.

As for Taranee, she couldn't wait for classes to be entirely over. She made up her mind to visit the dance academy today, then later at home, she'd tell her mom all about her decision.

As the daydreams went on, Taranee gazed out the window.

" _AH!_ "

She fell off her chair when, instead of the snowy school grounds, Caleb's face showed up.

"Yes, Miss Cook?" Mitridge's voice almost boomed in Taranee's head. "Do you have any problem with Miss Lair's solution?"

"Um...!" Taranee stood and stole a glance at the window. Caleb was out of sight. "Uh... I want to go solve it in Irma's stead!"

"Do it!" Irma ran to her and shoved her the chalk. "For the sake of love, please! I love you, Tara, please do it for me?"

Mitridge's frown deepened. "Miss Lair, back to the board for you. You will continue to solve the problem."

Irma squeaked in fright and ran back to the board with the chalk.

"As for you, Miss Cook, I'm pleased you wish to help your friend, but I won't let you. You should've done that outside of classes."

A few students snickered, and Taranee sat back down. Hay Lin gave her a quizzical look.

_'What's going on?'_ Hay Lin asked in their mental link.

_'Caleb's here. Be right back.'_

Taranee concentrated, and in a bit, her mind was linked with Caleb's.

_'Caleb!'_

_'...uh, is that you, Taranee?'_

_'It's me. What do you want?'_

_'Uh... Lord Cedric escaped.'_

"Not again...?" Taranee whispered through gritted teeth. _'Okay. So he's here, but we can't really get off class for now.'_

_'Can't you sneak out?'_

_'Um, I don’t know if they can. And, long story short, I quit being a guardian.'_

_'What?!'_

Caleb peeked from the window, and Taranee could only smile.

_'So who'd come with me?!'_ asked Caleb.

Taranee thought. Will and Cornelia had Chemistry, and Irma and Hay Lin were still stuck in Physics with her. Who was available…

Well, there was someone available at this hour. The only thing was that they never really worked together before...

_'Orube.'_

_'Orube?'_

_'The warrior from when... uh... you and Blunk were told to go back to Meridian?'_

_'Oh. Her.'_

_'Yeah. Her. She can help you. She's over at Mrs. Rudolph's. You know where that is, right?'_

_'...no?'_

Uh-oh. _'Stay there.'_ Taranee needed to escape class, now, and concentrate a bit to contact Orube from so far away.

"Um, Professor!" Taranee raised her hand. "Can I use a restroom break?"

The professor adjusted her spectacles, as if inspecting Taranee's sincerity. Taranee tried to look as innocent as she could. Irma frowned, no doubt trying to manipulate Mitridge into agreeing.

"...alright, but be quick." Mitridge turned around.

In the mental link, Irma complained of not thinking about using her powers earlier, but she worried about being caught concentrating. Mitridge was no doubt scary, but Taranee was thankful Irma helped her, despite. The ex-Guardian of Fire ran towards the nearest restroom and locked herself in a stall. Better make good use of her powers before they expire!

-=-

The day was so bright, and Orube found herself with nothing to do but stay indoors. It was so, so cold outside and wearing layers of clothing was so inconvenient for movement. Plus, a lot of them were so, so itchy.

It wasn't like she could train indoors, not when the guardians might come over any time soon and see what changes she did to the unfamiliar house that was way too big for her liking. She changed her bandages for the third time as she thought of what to do.

She laid out a mat and sat on it. She tried to meditate, hoping it would give her a solution to her boredom… or her stupidity. Yesterday was a wasted day on both fronts and thus should be avoided. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

The neighbors yelled. Someone was playing their musical instrument. Some sort of engine was running, loud, loud, loud.

Orube jumped on her feet and slammed the windows closed, drew the curtains shut. What a noisy, noisy planet! She retreated into the couch, panting hard. When had she been out of breath?

_‘Orube…’_

She covered her ears. No more noise, please!

_‘Orube… Orube, we need your help!’_

“No!”

_‘It’s Taranee!’_

Taranee… a familiar name… the guardians… she messed it up…

Orube resisted. “ _No!_ ”

_‘Listen! Please! We need your help, more than ever. Please.’_

Orube tried to scratch the voice out of her head. Distractions were unwelcome, and so were voices in her head. She only wanted to meditate a little and find something to do!

She scratched, and scratched, and scratched.

_‘Orube! This is a serious matter! Please listen!’_

_‘Why?!’_

_‘Because Heatherfield is in danger! Earth is in danger!’_

Orube bit her lip. What? Why? Why should this matter to her?

_‘Lord Cedric escaped his prison from Meridian, and Caleb is here to hunt him down. Please help him. Please help Meridian. I don’t think Caleb can stay here for long, but please. The guardians would be very grateful if you found him for us.’_

Orube tried to even her breathing. N-no. She couldn’t lose herself at a moment like this. She had a job, and her job was to aid the guardians.

_‘You in? I mean, you good?’_

_‘I’m… I’m fine. I’ll do it.’_

_‘Good. Meet Caleb in Sheffield Institute, ASAP. Go!’_

Orube didn’t know what ‘ASAP’ meant, but she knew that this was an urgent matter. She grabbed two coats and a pair of boots. Though uncomfortable with the multiple layers, she bolted out of the house in search of Sheffield Institute.

She met the soldier from Meridian and… and the peculiar, foul-smelling thing. Orube only bowed and awaited orders. This was a chance to do something right, and she wouldn’t let it escape her grasp.

-=-

The Earthling winter was bearable, so how come he couldn’t sleep? Cedric had stolen a simpleton human’s house for the night as still had to think in a cozy place. The bookstore was out of question; he’d be jumping straight into enemy territory if he came back.

But slumber hadn’t come. It couldn’t be attributed to the fact that he tried to get comfortable in a place he was unfamiliar with. This humanly house was much, much better than his prison cell.

No, he was not terrified of the mausoleum he happened into. That wasn’t part of the plan and that wasn’t his main concern, so it couldn’t be that. But Cedric’s mind did loop back into it, so many times, mainly because he thought he should’ve stolen a crystal or two, instead of letting himself be distracted by Queen Weira’s empty tomb.

Thinking about that gave him shivers again. No, he couldn’t let that little trivial(?) fact distract him.

But why was he so afraid of the late Queen? Lord Cedric did not believe in the dead coming back to life, nor had he acquainted himself with the mysterious, revered monarch in any way, positive or negative. He had no real relation to the late Queen besides his (previous) connection with Phobos. Could it be because Queen Weira was the Heart of Meridian before? If she was alive, how come Elyon was the current Heart?

The questions kept him up and about, clearly very distracted.

Cedric paced about in the house. The guardians. His concern was the guardians. He could try to find them. If his knowledge was still updated, they should be in Sheffield Institute right now. He could probably attack them, but there were too many humans around and they would only get in the way. Even if he did succeed, he would attract too much attention, perhaps even draw Kandrakar’s power near.

That meant he had to wait it out until later in the afternoon.

Curses. He should’ve attacked the guardians at night, surprising them during their sleep. He should’ve not walked into the mausoleum. The nether energy surrounding it had poisoned him!

Perhaps a walk should clear his mind. No, the rebel leader would’ve figured out by now that the only place to search in was Heatherfield. But, staying in this house would mean Cedric would have nowhere to go. He had to mix in with a crowd and confuse his pursuers. The only one standing in his way would be that passling; he could easily kill the thing.

Yes. A walk was in order.

Cedric pulled on several layers of Earthly clothes and ventured into the snowy streets. People were heading towards one general direction, and that was to a local market square. He grinned. Perfect.

-=-

When Will rushed into the restroom come lunch break, she pulled the Heart from her bag. It was shining brightly, and something told her it’s been shining brightly for a few minutes now. She grimaced. She might’ve planned it earlier, but she had no time for Arkhanta-touring during lunch break!

Will stuffed the Heart back into her bag, hiding it with the best of her ability. As other girls filled the restroom, she entered a stall, but she did not expect to see the water reflecting a figure of the Heart. She flushed the toilet a few times before scurrying out and into the other, more crowded restroom near the cafeteria. She just wanted to do her business in peace; what the heck was going on?!

After having done her business in relative peace (no thanks to the bunch of girls coming in and out), she pulled into the cafeteria with a sour face and lined up. As she received today’s stomach items, Will found the food forming into the shape of the Heart – oh dear.

She went over to their table with a large scowl.

“Look at what Eric gave me!” Hay Lin squealed, and Will’s headache grew. “Isn’t he so precious?!”

“A heart cross-stitch project, huh?” Irma inspected Hay Lin’s gift. “Not bad!” Sure, but all Will could see was the Heart. Kandrakar was being rather persistent today.

“Where’s Taranee?” Will asked, “And what was the important thing she wanted to tell me?”

“She’s another casualty to Mitridge,” Irma answered, “But anyway, she said Caleb was here earlier. Or something like that.”

“What for?”

“Uh.”

Hay Lin cocked her head. “I dunno. She didn’t say.”

Will dug her fork into the food. “ _UGH._ This better not be related to why Kandrakar is calling us right now!”

“Kandrakar is _what?!_ ” The two other girls stood from the table abruptly.

“This can’t be happening.”

“ _Pleeeaaase!_ Can’t they wait until I’ve given my gift for Mr. Sylla?!”

“Please don’t make us go back there yet. I promise I won’t go into zenith mode anymore!”

Will massaged her temples. She had to tell Himerish they need that break, and fast!

As Matt approached the table, Will jumped off it.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“Hey Matt, love you.” Will gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “But I hate the Oracle so much, so I’m gonna go see him right now, and I’m gonna give him a piece of my mind!”

“What’s going on?”

“Well.” Will huffed. “The Bigwig’s not just activating the Heart, but he’s also sending off images of the Heart in the weirdest of places! All I want to do right now is nourish my body, but he’s pretty persistent!”

“Should we go?” Irma asked.

“No. I’ll do it myself. You two stay here and wait for Taranee’s word. Actually…” Will turned to Matt. “Stay with them until Taranee gets back and tells us what’s going on with Caleb.”

Matt’s eyes widened. “I thought he was banned or something?”

“That’s what we all thought.”

Will turned around and left. She would head to the restroom near the cafeteria, but it was still crowded. She passed by the other restrooms, but they too were occupied. If she dared to use the staff restroom, she might run into Mrs. Knickerbocker and get scolded.

As Will pondered where to go, the school custodian closed the storage room. She immediately rushed inside and angrily folded to Kandrakar.

"Okay, listen up, and listen well!" she shouted as she stepped up to the elders. "I've no idea why you're calling me at such a time, and I've no idea why you want to force us to work—"

"Where are your manners, child?" Luba approached her with a big frown. "This is not how you address the Oracle!"

"And using various objects to form the Heart of Kandrakar to call us isn't a polite way to force us out of our classes! We can't always be a guardian! We're still young, teenage girls!"

"Now, calm down, you two!" Himerish said. "I tried calling you here because—"

Just then, a green pool of energy swirled into existence before them. In the mirror-like center, a man laughed, his voice deep and bitter.

_Ari!_

"You!" Kadma shrieked.

"Why, why, isn't it a little too easy to open a view-fold?!" the maddened king mused. Will squinted her eyes and found Yua standing behind him and concentrating, the green jewel-like formations on her head glowing. "Soon, I will be able to walk the halls of Kandrakar! And I will obtain a cure to my son's illness!"

Will, though a little mad her show had been stolen, pushed her way to the front. "Maybe Kandrakar was wrong to deny your request, but you're wrong for trying to attack us and involve a whole village for it!"

Ari's face darkened. "You are deceivers. You would've poisoned the minds of the Urdians, and I would've relieved them of this pain and sorrow you always bring with you!"

Two days. They've only been there for two days, and yet Ari was so quick to judge!

But as Will opened her mouth, Himerish lifted his hand to quiet her. “My protégés wish nothing but the betterment of your people,” he said. “As it is, your ownership of the banshee is worsening your arrogance by the moment, and I fear that your arrogance has infected your people. You are turning yourself into an icon that your people blindly follow, simply because of your banshee!”

Ari’s eyes glowed with rage. “The people! They follow me for I understand them! These people you speak of… they recognize that I alone can do what others cannot. Do your little guardians even trust you?”

Will bit the insides of her cheeks. If she were to answer that question, she wouldn’t be able to say anything at all.

“Tell me, oh most wise Oracle! Why is it that your guardians seem so… divided? Do you understand these young guardians of yours? Do you truly guide them, or do you merely send them over to negotiate, for you and your underlings are so cowardly you cannot walk through these unguarded halls of my citadel yourselves?”

“Such impudence!” Luba declared, baring her fangs and claws. “Does this man dare to declare war on Kandrakar?!”

Tibor held her back. “Luba, calm yourself.”

“Tell me, Kandrakar. Do your guardians know what you do? Do your guardians know where you come from? Do those naïve little girls know and understand why you need to hole yourselves up in an almost impenetrable fortress, while they fight under your name? I’m willing to gamble that they’ve almost been killed and you’ve done nothing about that!”

Will looked away in shame and bitterness. Ari was right… and she could see Himerish’s fists shaking. She glanced at the other elders, at the former guardians. They too were shaking, and none of them tried to defend Kandrakar.

“Master…” Yua cried, and Ari sighed.

“We will end this here. If you wouldn’t test my patience, this wouldn’t have to happen again…”

With that, the view-fold shrunk and disappeared. Silence fell upon the council, shame filling up Will.

“…I…” she said, “I’m going back… but… we won’t be back for Ari… not for some time…”

Immediately, she opened a fold and left the elders.

Will left the storage closet with a heavy heart, even almost bumping into Sylla in the hallway. She had no time or energy to declare that meeting suspicious because he was still a suspicious person in her book, or to even complain about his own existence in the school or the universe anymore. Things weren’t just going the way Will wanted it, and if she argued any more, she might just end up self-combusting into oblivion.

When she returned to the lunch table, Taranee already joined the others, who all held worried faces.

Will hoped, and hoped, and hoped, and even held onto Matt’s hand for good luck, any sort of good luck the world can miraculously bless them with. “Please don’t tell me something’s wrong.”

Taranee’s face told her otherwise, and Will inwardly groaned. “Actually… Caleb’s here because Cedric got out. Again.”

“Just great.” Sarcasm laced Will’s voice. “Really great. Any news to top that?”

“Um…” Hay Lin held up Eric’s little cross-stitch project. “Taranee won’t be coming with us…”

“That’s expected. Next.”

“And so is Cornelia.”

What’s that about trying to see Cornelia’s side again? Will moaned and let her face drop against her mashed potato.

-=-

A little while earlier, Caleb and Blunk met up with Orube. Needless to say, it was an awkward meeting. They barely managed to say even a simple ‘hi’, before Caleb turned to Blunk and told the passling to start tracking down Lord Cedric’s trail. The ex-rebel leader couldn’t think of a good greeting, and the warrior hadn’t been much of a speaker.

At the least, she was very cooperative.

“This Lord Cedric,” she said through her panting, “How does he look like again?”

“Uh…” Caleb didn’t know if he should describe Cedric as a naga, or as a human. “Blonde. Long hair. Completely untrustworthy.”

Orube’s face crumpled. Something in Caleb’s gut told him Orube probably didn’t understand that. Instead of explaining further, Caleb chose to keep quiet as he ran, but he only ended up making it a lot more awkward. Minutes had passed by, and that meant his window to save the conversation also closed. Rats.

Eventually, Blunk had to hide inside a garbage can. The trail led them to a crowded bazaar, and Caleb did not know how to interpret that. Lord Cedric didn’t exactly favor mingling with humans, but this was an area filled with humans – heck, it was an area filled with couples, so that’s double the humans!

“How does being untrustworthy look like?” Orube asked.

But Caleb now knew Lord Cedric was in his human form. “He probably has that long, boring coat. And he looks really gloomy even if he has fair skin. His hair’s in a ponytail and he wears a pair of spectacles like Taranee does, but they’re in a different shape than hers.”

Orube’s frown still told Caleb he was confusing, but he couldn’t find any better words to describe the escaped prisoner.

Quickly, Caleb turned to the garbage can next to them. “Okay, Blunk. Where do you think he is?”

“To the west! The west! Blunk smell slimy snake to the west…” Blunk squeaked from inside the garbage can. “Wait! To the east! Slimy snake smell is in east! …no, maybe over nearby.” Beat. “Blunk confused. Where is slimy snake lord?!”

Caleb grimaced. “…I think that means he’s expecting us, and he’s fooled us pretty well.”

Orube sniffed in the air. Right. She had Blunk’s tracking skills too. “Ugh!” She covered her nose. Ugh. “I can’t tell… the scents are mixing!”

Caleb gazed into the crowded space. He felt as if they’d been fooled, that they’ve walked right into Lord Cedric’s trap. But if his tracks were all over the place, then he could be waiting in Sheffield right now!

“We have to go back!” Caleb announced and turned to Orube… only to find her gone. “…uh, Orube?”

“Over here, soldier!”

Caleb looked up and found her peeking from atop a roof. He found a set of stairs and climbed, pulling Blunk along. “Could you not disappear like that?”

“…I suppose… but, please, look.” Orube pointed at the crowd before them. “Now you can see better.”

Caleb squinted his eyes and stared. Well, she was feline, after all, but he wondered how she was able to escape detection, with her large ears that she would try to cover (in vain!) from time to time, or the tail that peeked from under her coat… coats.

“Do you see him?”

Caleb flinched. “Uh… give me a moment.” If only he had something to see better with…

“Blunk’s new wares!”

The passling shot up from the garbage can with a strange object in his hands. Caleb snatched it and inspected it. It had glasses that made things small. Huh… He turned it around, and found that on the other end, it made things big. The thing was that this strange seeing-object was really small and could fit into a child’s hand rather well.

“Blunk got for bargain; Blunk sell for bargain!”

“I’m only borrowing it, Blunk.” Caleb closed an eye and gazed into the seeing-object. He inspected various blonde-haired people in the bazaar. “No… not him, not him… that’s a girl! That’s also a girl. That’s a hag.” Where, oh where could Lord Cedric be… “Oh! There he is!”

Lord Cedric. Mixing in with the crowd and wearing a familiar set of clothes. Caleb couldn’t be wrong; the shapeshifter was inspecting a few books – or in other words, the shapeshifter was distracted.

“Over there in the bookstore.” Caleb handed the seeing-object to Orube. “Do you see him? He wears an ugly coat, and he’s currently reading.”

“…I don’t really see anything…” Orube said, but Caleb was too excited to mind it. He quickly grabbed her and ran down the stairs. “Ow!”

“We have to get him! _Now!_ ”

But as they approached the middle of the noisy bazaar, Caleb’s eyes caught a big fancy sign that made his heart drop.

**‘Valentine’s Bazaar.’**

Valentine’s Day. Cornelia.

Caleb cussed out in Meridianite under his breath. He still had to surprise her and soothe her aching heart. Oh, dear. She must’ve missed him terribly. But if Taranee and the others already know he’s here, was it still a surprise?

“…hold on.” He turned to Orube. “I still have a… super secret mission to do.” He grinned, but he decided that happiness won’t cut it and instead frowned as deeply as he could.

“…what mission?”

“It is super secret.” Caleb sighed for effect. “And I realized that this super secret mission must commence… here and now.”

Caleb took her by the wrist and calmly lead her to where Lord Cedric was. The escaped prisoner was still reading, too absorbed in his own thoughts. Inwardly, Caleb sighed and thanked Odn.

“A-ahem,” Caleb whispered to Orube. “You will take care of this mission to deal with Lord Cedric, and…” He imagined she wouldn’t know how to go to Meridian, but if she were a warrior, she’d know what to do to escaped prisoners. “Do what you must. Keep an eye on him until the guardians arrive.”

Caleb turned to the very confused Blunk. “And you, go tell the guardians that Lord Cedric has been found and taken care of.”

“And what will you do?” Orube asked.

“I will take care of the super secret mission. But do not worry; I will be as quick as Imdahl’s lightning.”

The warrior tipped her head, but she didn’t question it further. Caleb gave a salute and went on his way. He just hoped that he’d find a suitable gift – and fast.

-=-

Cedric stiffened and looked around. He heard a familiar voice nearby and placed the book back in its rack. Had he been followed? Did the guardians know he was here?

But, it would be impossible for a passling to pick out his scent in a crowd like this. After all, he took off his outer layers and hid them in the small, open boutiques to confuse a passling’s sensitive nose.

Or, maybe, he should move to another location. In fact, he’d replaced his outer layers with similar clothes so easily, the humans would never know there had been a thief.

Cedric frowned and left. There was bound to be another place filled with people.

The drift of the crowd led him to a structure called a mall. Cedric went in and acted on his small anti-passling plan. He visited men’s boutiques and left his clothes there, quickly swapping for another, similar-looking clothing. He would often gaze around at an angle, trying to see if there was someone following him.

However, he couldn’t shake off the feeling that someone was _staring_ at him. It felt stronger than that almost unshakeable impression that the queenly statues left him with. It was as if an assassin was on his back, just waiting for a cleaner, quieter opportunity to take him out.

But that might work into his plan. As long as he was interacting with a visible crowd, his pursuer wouldn’t have a better opportunity to take him down. Besides, with the way the mall was structured, there was bound to have alternate routes or passageways, but his pursuer hadn’t surprised him in any way at all.

He could be wrong, but he had to gamble on it. Better safe than sorry.

After circling the entire mall, he’d have to move again. It was pretty obvious that the humans were celebrating an Earthly holiday, and that meant celebrations and parties were bound to happen. Perhaps, if there was an even bigger crowd, he would have the opportunity to hide himself better, or maybe even finally escape his unknown pursuer.

Nobody would outsmart Lord Cedric, not even when he had little to work with. He wasn’t considered the smartest scholar Meridian ever produced for nothing.

-=-

The moment the school bell rang for dismissal, Will, Matt, Irma, and Hay Lin met up with Blunk near Sheffield's dumpsters and headed for the bazaar. Cornelia headed home to prepare for her open call, and Taranee roped Nigel into visiting the dance academy with her.

Taranee almost regretted leaving her friends to finding Cedric, but she wanted to be loyal to her declaration of resignation. Besides, this would be an opportunity for her and Nigel to go on a date without having to ask for permission from her mom.

The couple stepped off the bus and a large building came into view. It stood atop a small hill next to the bay, above which the gulls were crying, and the large sign almost told Taranee, ‘Welcome back home’.

"Woah. This looks neat." Nigel beamed at her. "Do you think their classrooms have windows on the other side?"

"I'd like that!" Taranee imagined the scenic view of the bay. "They usually have mirrors for walls, though, but let's see!"

They walked into the tiled lobby where upbeat music greeted them. Photographs of various dance forms and prominent performers decorated the walls. The couple went up to the front desk.

“Hello!” Taranee said to the receptionist. It was a cute girl with shaggy brown hair, and her smile almost reached the mole on her cheek.

“Hey there!” the other girl greeted back, “Welcome to Jensen’s! We just opened lately!”

“Hi. I’m Taranee, and this is my boyfriend, Nigel.” Taranee gestured to him. “We… I mean, _I_ was hoping if I could get some more info on your program, and hopefully… we get some sort of tour, too. If you don’t mind!”

“Well, why not?”

Just then, a lithe woman in afro curls dropped by. “Oh, my! New students?”

“No, Edna,” the receptionist said, “Not _yet_ , at least.”

Nigel shook his head. “Thanks for the offer, but my girlfriend’s the one inquiring.”

“How sweet.” The young brunette turned to the older woman. “Hey, Edna. Mind looking after the front desk for me? I wanna tour these kids ‘round my kingdom!”

Edna laughed and went behind the front desk. “Don’t call them kids as if you aren’t one, _Sheila!_ ”

Taranee smiled. The warmth reminded her of Sesamo and her former friends. She’d written to them sometimes, but it still didn’t compare being right next to them.

She clutched Nigel’s hands and he squeezed back as they followed Sheila deeper into the academy.

“We offer several courses here!” Sheila explained. “Edna teaches ballroom dances. There’s Laine who teaches ballet and pretty much interpretative dance. And, my dad teaches funk and hip hop. He dreams of being able to choreograph performances for big stars!”

“Your dad?” Taranee repeated, “He sounds nice.”

“Yeah. He opened the academy in hopes of fulfilling his dream!”

Taranee thought about the name of the school. _Jensen’s Dance Academy…_ oh. That was what Sheila meant by ‘her’ kingdom.

“Wait, so you really do own this big thing?!” Nigel blurted out.

“The whole lot! Even the apartment on the third floor; that’s for us and the teachers… at least the regulars.”

“That’s rich!”

“Not really. We’re still paying off the loans on top of paying the teachers and the utility.” Sheila turned to them and batted her eyelids. “So, if you can, could you please, _please_ tell your friends about us?”

“Sure. I guess our band could use a few lessons on looking cool…”

“Sweet!”

Taranee giggled. “So, how long had you guys been in Heatherfield?”

Joy faded from Sheila’s voice, bit by bit. “Just a few weeks! But Dad already saw this place about two years ago… but, to be honest with you, I don’t know if we’ll stay.”

“But what about the loans?” Nigel asked.

“I don’t really know.” Sheila shrugged. “I just don’t really… _feel_ the whole newcomer thing. I don’t even feel like going to school yet! My dad’s pretty enthusiastic, but Heatherfield really just seems to be some quiet old town!”

“Geez, did you have to be that blunt?”

Taranee couldn’t help but agree with Sheila, though. She’d once been a new girl in the neighborhood too, and she knew what this was. This was change, and Sheila feared it. Fear casted doubt in her heart, which in turn spoiled any chance for her to have fun.

“By the way!” Sheila’s chipper voice went back. “This is our dance room for hip hop, my favorite room! I helped design this one!”

The doors were slid open, and Taranee and Nigel couldn’t bite back their gasps. As predicted, the side facing the bay was lined with large windows, but it was still breathtaking to look at. The afternoon sunset captivated the ex-guardian’s mind – _unleash the fire within_.

The world seemingly stopped, and all other noise muted out. Music played in her ears and fire rushed through her limbs. _Move_ , it begged of her. _Move your body; shake your soul._

Someone from Sesamo once told her: not everyone is blessed with a gift, but for it to be a gift, it must be used; it must be maintained. Never be afraid; dare to use it to reach those highly-regarded dreams and make impossible wishes come true. Let go of the fear of being not good enough. Let the heart decide and take the risk. And if worse comes to worst, charge it to experience and look back with a smile.

Taranee balanced her glasses on her head and started her dance. The flames roused in her body as she danced to the rhythm in her heart. Her limbs stretched and turned and twisted; her muscles still remember a routine from so long ago. Her heart cried out; her heart smiled. It delivered freedom throughout her veins. Memories of Sesamo she’d pushed away rushed back in and lead her on the makeshift stage of a dance studio.

Then clapping. The sound of loud clapping took her focus, and Taranee hid her face in embarrassment as she turned to find an aged man had joined Nigel and Sheila.

“Bravo! What a spark!” the man said, “It’s been so long since I saw someone with such energy and sense of rhythm! You put music in my ears as I watched that… and that’s a pretty great gift you have!”

“I…” Taranee tried to smile. “Thank you…”

“I’m Kevin Jensen.” He held his hand out. Taranee Cook shook it rather shyly.

“T-Taranee Cook…”

“I know a talent when I see one. You clearly have the fire of a burning passion within you, and I sense that you’ve been dancing for a long time!”

“Not really, Sir, no!” Taranee shook her hands in the air. “I… um… well, I _used_ to.”

“Then seek it again! If you make it through the tests, then we can help you open the doors for professional dancing!”

“R-really…?” Taranee gazed at Nigel. _Me! A professional dancer!_ Her eyes asked him, _‘Should I?’_

He grinned back at her, mouthing, _‘Yes!’_ Even Sheila was nodding enthusiastically.

But, Taranee remembered her mom. What would she say about this? “Um, wait, I don’t think I can…”

“Don’t worry about deciding now,” Kevin reassured her, “Our classes will start next week, so just think about it until then.”

Taranee looked at Nigel again and ran into his arms. “Think I can do it?”

“Yeah!” He twirled her around. “I bet you can _slay_ it!”

She had to do it. She just had to go back. And she would, no matter what her mother would say.

-=-

No matter what her mother would say, Cornelia just couldn’t shake the nervousness away. Here she was, in the agency for her open call, and she realized she hadn’t even practiced a walk down an imaginary runway! She had been so preoccupied about maintaining her beauty. Ugh, was she even due to walk down an imaginary runway? Never mind being tasked to do that when she couldn’t even think straight.

They arrived early. Cornelia brought her portfolio with her, but she doubted if it was enough. After all, she was just a kid when she modelled for the local skating rink and other small gigs. The receptionist asked a few basic questions, took her portfolio, and said a few basic things. Cornelia, now seated, waited for further instructions. Her hands were as cold as ice and the indoor plants next to her would react, usually by reaching out to her. This was not the time for them to try and comfort her in a way that would frighten off very important strangers!

Oh. She was only wearing a white shirt and a pair of plain jeans. Was that enough? She did take a quick shower beforehand, she already trimmed and cleaned her nails the other day… but then again, she wasn’t even wearing that much makeup! How would the management know if she was worthy if she was wearing something as boring as this?

There were a few other teens like her. Cornelia found it a little funny that their hairs were of different shades of blonde, and paired with their similar shirt-and-jeans outfits… it made the agency look like a factory of Barbie doll wannabes. They also had a parent or a guardian with them.

And like all these other teens, she was tasked to fill in some documents. Cornelia was forced to use her powers to move the pen itself to write letters, words, whatever, all while faking motions with her hand.

“Cornelia Hale.”

She heard her name being called, so that must mean it was her turn, right?!

“Celina Dernier, Catarina Cruz, Connie Rayson…”

Oh. They were all being called.

A woman led them inside a studio-like room, and it brought memories back for the Earth Guardian. When she was a kid, she was made to stand in something like this before, to demonstrate a few forms and poses. She saw herself in a local ad for Heatherfield, and… well, Cornelia found less and less time for the rink.

“Alright everyone.” The woman turned to them and smiled. “We’re going to take your measurements again, and we’ll take photographs of each and every one of you. Is that all right?”

A shy chorus of ‘yes’ came from the teens.

A man came out of a different room as Cornelia and the other girls lined up and stood against a marked wall. The woman measured them and asked more basic questions; the man took pictures of them from all angles possible. Cornelia answered the woman’s questions as confidently as she could and posed for the man when he told her what pose to hold.

So… where was the runway part?

“Thank you, girls!” the woman said, “We’ll call your parents if we think we have a job for you. That’s it for today. Thank you all for coming.”

That’s it? That was it?! The receptionist handed Cornelia and another girl their portfolios, and they were free to go.

The Earth Guardian sat in the car with her mother in silence. Maybe she was just overdoing it. Of course, being a runway model had to be top-tier. Just like those girls from the other day said – the competition was tough.

“What do you think, honey?” her mother asked.

“I… it was… underwhelming?” Cornelia tried to smile as politely as possible. It was difficult not to feel disappointed. “It felt… easy?”

“In that case, why don’t you try going to other open calls? To increase your chances of getting accepted, at least.”

Hm… why not? Surely, VistaGirls couldn’t be the only modelling agency in town! But that meant she had to compete with a lot more girls…

Even so, Cornelia thought she had a bit of edge as a slightly more experienced model… and because she had something to prove to the other guardians – she was _worth_ it.

“Yeah. Let’s do that. I’ll do that. Thanks, mom!”

-=-

Caleb scowled as he furiously wrote while seated on a bench.

He’d gone all around the bazaar and found a figurine depicting a blonde-haired girl and a brown-haired boy. He would’ve gotten it for his ladylove, promise. However, he might or might not have remembered that Heatherfield used another form of currency that he couldn't just earn. Borrowing money would've been dishonorable, and even if he did try that, who knows what time he'd finish begging a significant amount off the strangers?

At the least, he'd collected some of the free stuff people were giving away. In his hands, he had roses, some snacks wrapped in metal paper, and a card. And right now, he was trying to write a letter with a pen he borrowed.

It was the most he could do for the moment, regretfully so.

Caleb didn’t like how the days had gone so far for him and Cornelia. They hadn’t seen each other as much, and now that he had a chance to see her, he hadn’t prepared anything for their meeting at all. He just hoped she’d accept this gift and be patient for a better gift in the future.

He’d work on that much, much later.

Caleb wrote on a spare piece of paper, and he was glad he did so. Erasures filled the previously-blanked sheet! And his mind went blank several times, he accidentally misspelled or repeated words.

Sigh. So much for this holiday of love.

Caleb wasn’t entirely satisfied with a short letter, but that was all he could afford Cornelia for now. He then worked on carefully transferring his letter filled with sweat, blood, and tears… err, sans the blood.

“…and I… miss you… every day…” he murmured as he copied from his original draft. “I love you… and I hope… to have a proper meeting soon… with love, Caleb.”

He smiled at the card. “I hope she likes it.”

“Caleb! _Caleb!_ ”

Caleb turned around to greet the familiar voice. “H-hey! Will! Irma! Hay Lin! Matt! Blunk! …where’s Cornelia? And how about Taranee? What happened?”

“It’s a really long story,” Will said, “But Taranee’s out of commission too, but… a little more permanently. And Cornelia… Cornelia had other… uh… engagements.”

Caleb frowned. How disappointing! And after all that effort to save the day!

“What? Did you have gifts for the quote-endquote ‘best girl in the world’?” Irma giggled.

“Yeah… I did…”

Will held her hand out. “Okay. I can give them to her for you.”

Caleb’s eyes widened. “Really? You’ll do that?”

“Yeah!” Will turned to her boyfriend. “Matt, could you hold onto these until we find Cedric?”

Matt nodded and took the gifts from Caleb’s hands. The younger boy eyed the items; Caleb hoped he and the others wouldn’t notice that they weren’t really that valuable. Even so, he gave Matt a serious face.

“This is a very serious, super important mission. Do not fail. No matter what!”

“Aye-aye, captain! So, where's Cedric? And Orube?"

Caleb froze stiff as quarry stone. "Uh. She went after him." That was okay, right? Wait. He went all around the bazaar grounds, but he hadn’t seen either Orube or Lord Cedric! That was not okay! 

Will groaned. "What?! Blunk, did you know where they went?"

"Cat girl go after snake lord!" Blunk shrieked, "Blunk go after girls!"

Will let out a bomb of expletives and Caleb didn't need any further proof they were expletives beyond her red face and the electricity coming from her hair.

Oops.

Caleb scowled and turned around. “…I’m useless, I know.”

-=-

The soldier told her to keep an eye on the fugitive, so that she would do. Orube followed the man with the odd scent, a scent that reminded her of ancient books and sweaty sword practice. Lord Cedric was how they called him, she was told, and he didn’t appeal as a ‘Lord’ to her at first glance.

Not until he kept leading her all around the city.

His tactics frustrated her, but she had to keep an eye on him. That was the duty handed to her and only that. If she tried to follow Basiliadean protocol instead, no doubt the guardians would’ve been disappointed in her. She hadn’t understood why, but they frowned upon being proactive, and she was a fool to assume otherwise.

Though struggling with the multiple layers of itchy clothing, Orube navigated through the roofs and sneaked up on Lord Cedric. The night was fast approaching and yet neither the soldier from Meridian nor the guardians had come. Their absence caused worry in Orube’s warrior heart, but she couldn’t disappoint anyone this time. She would deliver, and she would do so perfectly.

Lord Cedric had yet again mingled with another crowd, but Orube hadn’t lost his scent or his trail. He’d gone through wardrobe changes several times, but she followed him. She forced herself to adjust on the irritating scents he carried, but by now, he’d given up on it. Perchance, he could’ve picked up on what her abilities were. Perchance, he could’ve grown tired of this tactic.

By the fires of Basiliade. If only he would sit still and stop. The cat-and-mouse game they’d been playing had grown tiring.

But lo and behold! If earlier, he hadn’t been interacting with his surroundings that much, now he was! He’d look at every person with such disdain, his face crumpled so much! Eventually, he ran away, and Orube ran after him.

He reached an almost empty veranda overlooking the crowd. Relief washed through a grateful Orube as he sat on a bench and sighed. He finally chose to stop! And he chose a quiet space to do so!

“…alright, you, whoever you are,” he announced, “Let’s stop this. You can’t keep chasing after me, and I can’t keep running from you forever.”

…was he talking to her? Orube refused to show herself. She scratched her arm; her wounds were getting itchy on top of the annoying fabric being itchy.

“I don’t know who you are, but you’re not one of the guardians,” he continued, “And you’re not a Meridianite either, or else I would’ve felt it. I would’ve known one of my own kin, or my own _planet_.”

Why would someone like him want to talk? This could be one of his tactics to lure her out. Now, her prey too was getting way too annoying.

“If I wanted to kill you, I would’ve tried doing so earlier. I’m… I’m tired. Honestly. I can’t keep running around like this. I _don’t_ want to keep running around like this.”

Orube tipped her head. No. She couldn’t trust him.

He sighed, his voice now softer. “We’re only enemies because you work with the guardians, and I work against them. Enemies by proxy, if you would.”

That was true, but she still considered him a threat. She would still fulfill her duty to keep an eye on him no matter what, not even if it appeared as if he wanted to make friends with her.

“Why don’t you and I… take a little break? Why don’t we be friends instead of enemies?”

She bit her lip as she tried pushing the ugly feeling back.. That sounded lovely. Having friends. However, she wasn’t here to make friends with an enemy. This all had to be an illusion meant to lure her out, not a whole-hearted attempt to soothe her pain from failing the people she was meant to serve well.

But, a loud noise blared about, and Orube screamed, covering her ears desperately. What was that noise?! Why did these people need to make such a loud noise?! On top of the itch and the weather, this hateful noise dared to add to her problems!

As she struggled to keep her eyes open, a figure drew closer to her. No, she couldn’t give herself away! She forced herself to crawl and hide, but Lord Cedric was much faster. No doubt that he didn’t mind the annoying noise like she did. Alas. Why did this planet love to overload itself with such annoying sounds?!

“ _Stay_.”

Large hands covered her shoulders and pulled her up. The next thing Orube knew was that she was face to face with blue eyes.

“ _NO!_ ”

She scratched his face and leapt away, back into the darkness she hid in. Her body shivered as she tried to shake the memory off. What striking eyes!

“I haven’t even done anything yet!” Lord Cedric complained. She heard his feet shuffling against the snow and sensed his scent going all around; he must be trying to look for her. “Where do _you_ come from?”

“…Basiliade,” she answered. Orube would play his game, but only to stall. She dragged her still-shaky body in the shadows, refusing to be seen by him.

“Basiliade,” he repeated. “The land of warriors; the place Kandrakar blesses so much because of your obedience and loyalty. You’re… you’re _feline_ warriors, if I’m correct.”

“…yes.”

“But don’t let them turn you into their loyal _dogs_.” Lord Cedric laughed, rather bitterly. “In fact, you should be living for yourself. You’re simply bound to be used if you follow someone.”

How dare he?! “I… I’m not being used! I studied in the sacred halls of Kandrakar; I lived in its fortress for a while. In turn, I will serve it, and if it tells me to serve the guardians, I will do so.”

“Why don’t we make a little wager, warrior?” The footsteps stopped, and Orube stopped moving too. “I will wager that you will not stay under their influence for long, and when we meet again, we would share more opinions that you’d like to admit.”

“You arrogant man!” Orube declared. “As an honorable warrior who does not go back on her word, I shall accept your wager.” It wasn’t like she would lose, anyway.

“On the account of your honor and pride.”

“As with yours.”

Lord Cedric laughed. “I like you. If you study under Kandrakar’s teachings, then does that mean you climbed your way up there to that damned fortress?”

“Of course.” Orube grinned. “Proudly so. I am the best student to the Keeper of the Aurameres.”

“That is pretty admirable. Why don’t you show yourself?”

“I refuse.” Despite all this flattery, Orube still had no reason to trust him. “I have nothing to gain from it.”

“But you have nothing to lose, either.”

“Are you so sure? Or are you using your own measure? Or is this merely trickery in order to tame me and sway me from the teachings of Kandrakar?”

“Why don’t you come out and see for yourself?”

Another loud noise blared about; this time, Orube could understand words. It was an announcement for some sort of event. The itch on her arms felt even more unbearable.

“Actually,” Lord Cedric suggested, “Why don’t we go down and see what that fuss is all about? I have an inkling that we feel similarly about this world.”

“I-it is merely your thoughts… I’m fine as I am!”

“You’re not. Your voice is trembling. Do you hate noisy places? I do, too.”

“You’ll never get my sympathy, you criminal.”

Just then, a large figure crashed against her hiding place. Loud music filled the air. Orube leapt away before the rubble fell on her, and what she saw earned a gasp from her. Her eyes beheld a huge snake-like creature!

She hissed at it, but it only laughed at her.

“Finally,” it said as it slithered closer, its form morphing through the shadows of dusk. “You come out of the shadows.”

Orube had little idea who Lord Cedric was before she came to hunt him down, but now, she knew he was a shapeshifter. A master of illusions, she reckoned, as he stepped closer and closer. She hissed at him again before lunging to bite his neck.

But his hands caught her shoulders and forced her to stay at a distance. Dammit, why did her arms itch and hurt right now?! Her claws tried to reach his face, his shoulders, anywhere they could scratch, but even as she heard fabric tear and smelled blood being drawn, he only hissed and snarled back. Orube gnarled and pushed against him, and they rolled against the cold ground.

“What the hell is your problem?! _OW!_ ”

“I could ask the same of you, fiend!”

Lord Cedric was no match for her strength, but he could match her speed. He dodged her kicks and punches so skillfully, and Orube regretted that she was without a weapon.

As they struggled and wrestled about, footsteps approached. With a simple sniff in the air, Orube knew that the guardians and their friends had arrived. She maneuvered about so she could pin Lord Cedric’s arms at the least, and—

_Ah! At last!_

He squirmed on the ground, kicking and struggling to roll away. “Unhand me, you flea-ridden cat!”

Though insulted, Orube felt a sense of pride, and she beamed at the guardians as they ran over to her. Surely, they would now appreciate—

“What the hell are you doing?!”

Orube almost jumped back. _W-what?_

“You could’ve let him escape!” The Quintessence Guardian summoned a cage of lightning which enveloped Lord Cedric. “How the hell did you get here?! And why haven’t you captured him?!”

Orube bit her trembling lip and took a few steps back. Why? Why was listening to instructions still wrong? She couldn’t answer at all, not when the leader of the guardians kept shooting her question after question. With nothing much to do beyond hate herself for being stupid, Orube only stared at her feet. Her arms itched, but she couldn’t scratch them.

“Um, why don’t we do it this way? Let’s all go to Meridian so you can familiarize yourself with their prisoners!”

“That’s not the issue here, Hay Lin.”

“But let’s go, anyway! I agree with that! In case, you know, mishaps in Meridian happen again?”

“Then make sure Snake Lord won’t ever get the opportunity ever again.“

“Ugh, I still need to attend the concert with Matt… oh, dear. It’s started, and it looks so packed!”

“Well, I guess we can enjoy it from here?”

Words began to blur as her vision did. Orube bit the pressure back. None of her words or her efforts were valuable, and she hated to admit it. She hated to side with the enemy, for the enemy had been right on this case. Orube stole a glance at the fugitive, who was merely looking at her. She averted her gaze; she could feel his intense blue eyes judging her, sneering at her. _We feel similarly, don’t we?_

Then, what was she, a warrior of Basiliade, doing here on Earth?

-=-

The date wasn't entirely a bust.

Will let Caleb take Cedric back to the prison and told everyone to go home - or, well, that was aimed at Orube more than everyone. Irma wouldn't miss a VMJ event, while Hay Lin probably didn't want to be at home. Just like Will. As much as she wanted to give her mom some sort of present, she didn't feel like going home.

Today's guardian affairs were so stressful. All throughout the concert, Will kept her arms around her boyfriend. Though a little sleepy, the four teens stayed on the veranda overlooking the concert grounds until curfew time came around.

Will took Caleb's gifts from Matt. Upon arriving home, she threw them all in the fridge and trudged to her bedroom. Her phone buzzed about and complained of her father calling again and again. She decided she'd deal with it the next morning.

Come the next morning, Will found a note on the fridge and her eyes bulged.

"Had to leave early for work. But who gave you the plastic rose and the card, and why are you keeping them inside the fridge? Is someone other than Matt asking you out??? -Mom"

_Oh, no._

Will opened the fridge and sighed in relief when she found the chocolates intact. The card and the rose, however, were not there.

"Where did mom take them?" she asked the refrigerator.

"She put them on your table."

Will groaned and marched back to her room. She stuffed the gifts into her bag and fell against the floor in frustration. Once, just once, couldn't the universe give her a break? She wasn't even interested in Caleb!

However, when she came to school, Cornelia was already waiting with a huge frown, and Taranee, upon seeing their leader, quickly hid inside the school. Rats.

"So I heard Caleb from _my_ friend that was here yesterday," the blonde said and flipped her hair. "And yesterday was Valentine's."

"Uh, yeah." Will nodded and presented the gifts. "He wanted to give these to you."

Cornelia grabbed the card first and inspected it. She gasped and showed the contents to Will. "Am I really supposed to believe this was from Caleb?!"

Sparks appeared on Will's head as she read the contents... or, well, what of the contents could be read. On a generic Valentine's card was a letter written in a different alphabet, almost like a secret code! Dammit. She should’ve asked Elyon about their local alphabet.

"I... of course it is!" Will almost crushed the chocolates in her hand. "Why would I even think of writing something like that?!"

"Because I hate Orube? Because you never took my side? Because I bailed out on you guys yesterday?!" Cornelia crumpled the card and threw it aside. _Yeesh!_ "And look at those! Those are like, generic stuff, like the free candies and roses they give out every year! Take your card, and your chocolates, and that flimsy fake rose, and your stupid friendly ass out of my sight!"

The sparks intensified. "Well, you know what?! My mom thought Caleb was interested in ME instead! If you won't take these, I will!" No, no, no, that wasn't what she meant to say!

"Fuck off, Wilhelmina! Go take my boyfriend too, because you're the goodie-goodie guardian! You're the goodie-goodie friend who won't listen to me when I'm in need!"

Just then, Alchemy came along. "What's wrong, Cornelia?"

"She is!" Cornelia pointed to Will. "Go keep Caleb and Orube and the others girls... if you can. I'm gonna stick with Alchemy here." She grabbed Alchemy's wrist and dragged her away. "Oh, and don't ever think of dragging Taranee into this. I don't think you can."

"Really, what's going on?!"

Will almost envied Alchemy. For someone named so ominously, she sure didn't know that magic was real and right next to her, and she sure wasn't involved in the politics of magic.

Will unwrapped the chocolates and popped them all in her mouth, one by one. Fuck Cornelia, and fuck her bitchiness. Caleb ought to be told about this, and if they'd break up, Cornelia would deserve it.

-=-

"I'm starting to doubt your faith in the chosen, Oracle."

In the fortress of Kandrakar, the elders gathered around in a council meeting. There was Endarno, the jailmaster of Kandrakar's prison, the Tower of Mists. There was Hariya, the one who guarded over the many magical artifacts under Kandrakar’s care. Althor, As-Sharwa, Bolgo... people from different worlds and planets, chosen by the Oracle to keep the world in balance.

For the remaining former guardians, it was a first to see all of them show up again since CHYKN dissolved formally. Having never felt fear like that for a long time, Kadma and Hallinor stayed in each other's arms.

If Kandrakar had an assembly like this, it would mean they were deliberating on the fates of the current guardians. It happened twice for them - the first to replace Nerissa, and the second, which they did not attend, to brief Yan Lin on her fate. By the second time, Kadma had ran to Zamballa, while Hallinor immediately gave her will and soul to the teachings of Kandrakar.

Looking back, their young selves had been so scared, and they had abandoned Yan Lin to the duty. But, the kind Yan Lin never harbored ill will towards them.

Even now as the two cowered in fear, Yan Lin and her altermere sat calmly next to them, and on the other end was Cassidy, who had began to age faster ever since she started living with her mother. The magic of guardianhood had worn off, but she didn't mind. After all, she'd already died and was only brought back to life with Nerissa's magic.

"Thank you for coming on such short notice," Hallinor whispered to her former teammates, “And at such an early time.”

Cassidy shook her head. "Don't worry about it. Mom’s due to wake up around lunchtime!"

Yan Lin then pointed to her altermere. "Well, this one worries about it. She wants to go back to Earth and go on a date with Professor Lyndon!"

Meera Lin complained, "He's handsome! Just let me do it! Besides, I didn't get married unlike you! And, to be honest, I don't want to get caught up in things like these again!"

"Well, this comes with being a guardian..."

"Or an ex-guardian," Kadma added.

Tibor glared at them. "Shush, all you!"

The former guardians turned to look at their former superiors. Luba continued with her onslaught of arguments against the guardians, while Himerish only listened with a grim face.

"They have no respect! And given a new teammate, they refuse to unite!" Luba concluded, "Therefore, they are unworthy as they are. They are too young! They may have saved the young Queen of Meridian, and they may have defeated Nerissa, but they are not prepared for more tasks!"

"And what do you suggest we do, Luba?" Himerish asked. "We did not choose them; XinJing and the dragons did. We had no hand in selecting these young girls, but understand that their guardianhood starting at an earlier age was a necessary evil to save Meridian from ruin."

"And they have grown arrogant. Had this arrogance not been present, I believe they would've found a way to free the banshee. I sent Orube with them so they could negotiate better, but what do they do?!"

"I know you have a soft heart for her, but I hope you are not accusing the guardians because of that."

"You are sure of that, Oracle."

Himerish's face said that he did not believe Luba. Regardless, as she look satisfied with her words, he sent her back to her seat.

"May we request the former guardians to come forth and testify?"

Meera Lin shot up. "Don't I get to say anything?"

"You will get your turn."

She sat down and crossed her arms.

The old women took turns explaining their own views towards the new guardians. In their mental link, they kept wondering how Kandrakar would do if they did find the girls unworthy. They wouldn’t take a new set of pseudo-guardians to solve the problem in Arkhanta, would they? Yan Lin herself had temporary teams, but members were usually replaced every now and then, thanks to the gravity and nature of the missions.

This was looking to be a long, long debate.

-=-

The rumbling ground roused Ilse from her sleep. The children next to her held onto her dress with trembling hands. She wrapped her arms around them as she waited for the shaking to stop.

"Is the sky falling?" a child asked.

"No." Ilse closed her eyes and let the ebb and flow of the energies bring her an answer. "Don't worry. The sky will not fall today."

"Then will our town fall?"

"It will not."

The shaking calmed. Cautiously, Ilse and the children vacated the bed to find any changes. Nothing.

They ran down the hill, and the children joined the adults. Ilse, meanwhile, rushed to Elder Dai's house.

"Elder Dai! Elder Dai!" she cried, but she found no one in the hut, except her grandmother's rather mysterious patient. "Madam, have you seen Elder Dai?"

The white-haired stranger only gazed into the distance. "I don't know."

"The granny who takes care of you. Where did she go?"

"Oh... oh! She left!" The woman giggled. "She left! My mind must be terribly shaken!"

Ilse smiled. "No, the ground shook."

"No, the ground cannot shake! The ground is... grounded. Stable." The woman reached a hand towards her. As Ilse felt the caress against her cheek, she gazed at the scar-like crack marks on the woman’s skin. "Aww, look at you. You look so pale. But your hair stays the same!"

"I could imagine why. How do you feel? Do you still have a fever?” A fever that would come and go but persist, even after the many years she’d stayed here. It was so peculiar; she’d survived it so far, but it was still a case to observe closely.

“I think so? I already wanna go out there and lie down under the sun!”

“Oh, I wouldn’t recommend that, Madam."

"I know… my body hurts so much so I can’t stay under the sun…"

Ilse squeezed the woman’s hands. “One day, you’ll finally be able to do it. I know you will.”

“I hope I do!”

“But for now, I need to speak to my granny. I’ll leave you be for now. Rest well, okay?”

“Oookay!”

As Ilse left the hut, she heard a tune from her grandmother's house. That patient loved that song so dearly... and Ilse hoped that, one day, she could be able to listen to that lovely melody without any worry.

She found her grandmother trying to pacify everyone's worry about the earthquake. It didn't take too long for the crowd to disperse, and Ilse's voice softened to a whisper.

"It's Ari," the young girl said.

"Yes. It is. I feel it too."

"...can't we really... spare her from this pain in another way?"

"There is no other way. You went there yourself; you even have constant contact with her. And yet, not even you could do anything to help her at all."

Ilse stared at the villagers. Her people; her family. It hurt.

"But you can still do something to help them."

"No!" Ilse grabbed Elder Dai's hands. "I won't leave you here."

"You will have to leave this land eventually. Sooner or later. It's the only way Arkhanta and its Heart could live on."

"How sure are you?" Ilse challenged, but her aged grandmother remained unfazed.

"As sure as I am of this world's approaching death."


	6. Timebound

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, it's me, and I'm back with another chapter. <:^)
> 
> **One big note:** I changed the term _"naga"_ to _"ophidian"_.
> 
> **Recap:**
> 
> It's Valentine's Day! Will enjoys a hearty meal with her mother in the morning and is given a courage boost to ask Kandrakar for a break, but Ari's interruption makes things awkward.
> 
> Caleb runs after Cedric in Heatherfield, who uses his wits to escape detection from Blunk, but not for long. However, Caleb makes Orube follow Cedric while the rebel leader himself tries to get an appropriate gift for Cornelia. Orube may have followed Caleb's words to the exact letter, but Will finds it annoying.
> 
> Meanwhile, Taranee goes to the Jensen's Dance Academy with Nigel and her passion for dance returns. Cornelia goes to her first open call with too much expectations.
> 
> The next day, Will tries to give Cornelia Caleb's gifts, but she thinks it's a joke to make her even more upset. In Kandrakar, the elders and the former guardians gather to deliberate on the guardians' performance and behavior these past few days.
> 
> **Warning:** Depictions of self-harm in this chapter. (Yes, it still involves Orube; yes, I'm very sorry.)

 That day, the people of Arkhanta complained of an earthquake. It wasn't strong, but they still worried.

And Ari heard them. Ari heard the cries of his people. Who was he to abandon them?

After sending the last of his audience home, Ari stood from his throne and walked into his room. The boy never even glanced at him once, choosing to be preoccupied with his drawing.

Ari gazed at his son and frowned. Seeing Maqi being ever so distant... and the earthquake, the dying land... these were all due to the banshee.

Ari went up the chained door on the other end of the room. He unlocked it swiftly and swung the heavy metal door open as carefully as he could. He stared at his little boy one more time, before closing the heavy door with a loud slam.

The door led to the cave-like passage that Ari knew so well. The fae should live in places like these; that way, they wouldn't harm the people. Not in the forest which the woodcutters and foragers frequent. Not in the shrubs and grasslands that could be used for farming. The caves? They were ideal - dark and perilous. Very appropriate for the faefolk, and very ideal for the Arkhantans.

Ledona was a crazy town for believing in the fae and following their rules so faithfully. There was no way the guardians of Kandrakar would win the Ledonites’ favor. That crafty little girl, Ilse... Ari would've preferred her gone, but even so, the batty Dai, her grandmother, would find another successor even if she had to extend her life even more and sell her soul to the fae they worship so zealously.

Where were they when he needed them the most? Bah. It was useless to think of traitors.

Ari came upon a set of steps and went down, down, down... in the heart of the hill the citadel was built upon, there she was. The witch. The evil fae who so selfishly withheld her powers. People would say that banshees loved to feed on mortals, out of sheer whim. They even ate the bodies of corpses if the dead weren't buried immediately.

But, Ari was immune to that curse. So was his son Maqi, and so would everyone else who believed in him. He would protect them against all these curses that graced Arkhanta.

"Drip... drip... drip..."

The shrill voice filled the emptiness of the artificial cave. Under his commands and his kindness, the banshee was able to live in an artificial swamp, filled with water taken from the real banshee swamp, and surrounded by the pink lilies that the banshees fed on.

“Drip… drip… drip…”

He'd been so, so kind to her, hadn’t he? So, what did he do for her not to grant the one and only wish in his heart? But, no matter. She could still compensate. Maqi meant the world to Ari, and so if she could not heal him, she could try to heal and protect the world instead.

“Drip… drip… drip…”

Ari found the banshee playing with the water by counting the drops that fell from her hand.

“Drip… drip—”

"Be silent, creature!"

Yua flinched as Ari's voice resounded through the caverns. She dropped her hand and turned to him. "...Master, w-what brings you... to the deepest... recesses... of the citadel?"

“How many times have I told you to keep the world safe?!”

“I… many… many times… before…”

“I want results, Yua!” he shouted.

“I… I try…”

Ari groaned. How many more times would she give this exact same excuse? Not wanting his visit to be wasted, Ari then asked, as calmly as he could, “Well then, I want information, Yua. Tell me what the guardians of Kandrakar are doing! Show me those wretched girls!" See? He communicated very calmly with the banshee. How could the guardians call him evil?

Yua tipped her head, but nodded ever so slightly. It was her little way of saying that she did not understand things, but with or without comprehension, she would obey.

"Y...yes..."

She took one of the lily flowers and ate it, making the stones on her forehead shine. She waved her hands and a view-fold swirling in purplish-black energy opened before Ari. "Gaze into it... my Lord... but don't lose... yourself in it..."

Ari grinned. Looking through the rift of space and time, he stood back and watched the show.

-o0o-

That day, Will rushed to the restroom in between classes to give her father a piece of her mind. He'd been bombarding her with missed calls and text messages. Will reckoned he needed something from her, and it was urgent, and—

And she was right.

**[[Will. Help. Dinner. After class. Serena. Family.]]**

It was an early dinner with Serena's family.

Will grimaced as she read the message over and over. She typed a message back.

**[[Calm down. Sleep. Take a shower. Wait for me after class. Get a bouquet and some wine but don’t drink the wine. Those are your presents.]]**

And that meant she had to tell her mother she would get home a little later than usual. Will blew a stray strand of hair and her usual lightning sparks appeared on her head.

"Could you not do that?" she said to her magic.

"I don't know if you can command your power the way you command us, Will!" her phone quipped.

"Oh, shut up."

Will dashed out of the stall and into her next class.

Alright. It really was happening. Tony and Serena were getting married. Congratulations!

And congratulations to Will for gaining a stepmother!

Will kept getting distracted from the lesson, so she opted to pretend listening as she let her mind wander. Better not quiet the noisy mind.

Yesterday, she thought about taking Cornelia's side when she saw Orube still struggling to take Cedric on her own, and Caleb had been there to help her for the first part... Ugh. That was irresponsible, but Will felt she might've taken out her stress on the warrior. However, the Keeper of the Heart didn't have the energy to tell more than what she said last night, nor was there time to meet up and clarify. She wished she could summon her astral drop - no, she couldn't, and she wouldn't! She promised herself!

Yesterday, Caleb got through and, what was he doing again? Right. Valentine’s. He was trying to make up for Valentine’s and that was very important, but unfortunately, Cornelia was too stuck up to ever accept that the foreign letter was from Caleb. Will took the crumpled letter back and tried to decode it herself earlier so at the least, Caleb’s efforts wouldn’t be wasted, but she couldn’t get anywhere.

Yesterday, Cornelia didn’t join them because she had an open call. She wasn’t of value these days and Will thought about leaving her behind on their next missions until that bitch calmed down.

Yesterday, Taranee kept to her stance about Kandrakar and its system, but she tried to help, at least. Tch. At least she was of more use than Cornelia was. Taranee was a warm, gentle fire in the group and the thought of her smile earlier gave Will’s heart a temporary rest from all the pain and fatigue.

But yesterday still sucked. Will wasn’t able to spend a good dinner with her mom. Oh well, she’d have to make up for it… somehow. After her dinner with her father and his soon-to-be relatives.

‘Ugh, I’m such a hypocrite. I’m such a fucking mess!’ Will thought as she grumbled and prayed that she wouldn’t be called to the board for anything. She needed a lot of quiet time to think of how to save her sanity, and how to save her father from any potential in-law trouble.

-o0o-

That day, Kandrakar held an assembly.

By then, it was Yan Lin’s turn to speak. She defended her granddaughter and the other guardians from Luba’s claims as much as she could. She brought up numerous facts that showed the girls’ unity and professionalism.

“That is why, Elders of Kandrakar, I believe we should give them a chance. Before they are guardians, they are young girls, and they are still growing. They are worthy, even if a little rough on the edges. No guardian is perfect, and you know that. You know the history of Kandrakar, and even its most loyal of servants had committed grave mistakes! The new team is simply… how do I say this…”

“Inexperienced,” Luba filled in.

Himerish frowned. “Luba, you were not asked to speak.”

“Oh, yes! The new team is simply… adjusting!” Yan Lin continued as if there were no interruptions. “When my teammates and I lost Nerissa as our leader, it had been a little too chaotic. And that also led to Cassidy’s death…”

“But I was brought back to life!” Cassidy said from the side.

“Shortly after, Kadma accepted being the Keeper of the Heart of Zamballa, while Hallinor pledged to the Council. But I still accomplished missions and kept the world in a balance. You gave me teammates, but none of them lasted long enough, but the world is still on its feet.”

“Yes, yes…” Kadma nodded.

“Which is why I believe the guardians are simply facing a test! If this is a test from the dragons themselves, they will find a way to unite again. If you cannot believe in them, then believe in the dragons who chose them. Believe in XinJing and her will. Believe in the Heart!”

Yan Lin bowed, signaling the end of her testimony. Himerish sent her back to her seat.

“Said like a true guardian, Yannie!” Cassidy noted.

The former guardians glanced around the Council. It seemed as if they were thinking very carefully about this stance. The old women tried to believe that the elders would empathize with the guardians.

“Meera Lin,” the Oracle called, “Do you have anything else to add?”

“Yes, Sir!” Meera Lin stood in the middle of the Council. “I believe it hasn’t been mentioned how the guardians use their powers while they’re off-duty.”

Yan Lin inwardly face-palmed; Kadma groaned.

“The guardians had been doing that for eons!” Cassidy yelled.

“Silence, Cassidy!” the Oracle reprimanded.

“And rather recklessly so! I see Hay Lin sometimes using her astral drop so the astral drop who I now lovingly call my own granddaughter, and who now goes by ‘Pao Chai’, would do Hay Lin’s chores for her, while Hay Lin could enjoy talking to her friends or drawing in her room!”

Hallinor whispered to Yan Lin, “Is that true?”

Yan Lin frowned. “Well, I can’t deny that, but it isn’t like we can’t live life a little!”

“And, I believe, yesterday, Caleb was in Heatherfield!”

The elders gasped, and Yan Lin tried to remember the events from yesterday. Hay Lin went up to Meera Lin to talk about yesterday…

Oh, dear. Poor Hay Lin must’ve thought Meera Lin was Yan Lin!

“Hay Lin told me all about it! Something about Lord Cedric escaping!”

The next round of gasps were even louder. The former guardians almost wanted to go back down to Heatherfield and reprimand their successors in a long lecturing session.

A member of the Council stood and requested for Meera Lin to elaborate on Hay Lin’s story. The altermere complied, and Yan Lin frowned all throughout the storytelling. Kadma and Hallinor suggested that the girls should’ve just summoned their astral drops, while Cassidy doubted that astral drops could be trusted, all the while gesturing to Meera Lin.

“Is there anything else, Meera Lin?”

“I guess not?”

“Alright. I have no more questions.”

Himerish motioned to Meera Lin. “You may go back to your seat.”

Meera Lin looked rather proud of herself as she marched back to the old guardians’ side.

“What were you thinking?!” “Whose side are you on, anyways?” “Do you really love our granddaughter or what?!”

She shrugged. “Hey, if this means Hay Lin could get some time off her guardian duties, then why not, right?”

“Um,” Cassidy corrected, “That wasn’t what we were fighting for.”

“Oh! …oops?”

The former guardians felt that even with Yan Lin’s heartfelt message, their successors would still get some form of punishment thanks to Meera Lin’s not-so-heartfelt information.

Maybe altermeres weren’t as perfect as Nerissa made them out to be.

-o0o-

That day, Sheffield students mourned when Raphael Sylla, who had a seemingly perfect attendance, did not come to school. Irma spent the day wearing a huge pout, and Martin's efforts to cheer her up went to naught.

But where would a Raphael Sylla be, if not in school? Why, Maria Medina and Joel McTiennan would answer you: in a shabby, nothing apartment complex!

"I thought he was assigned overseas?" McTiennan said to his partner as he looked through his binoculars. They were hiding inside the next apartment complex over, as spying from a car would make their activities too obvious. "What's he doing here?"

"That's why we're here, Joel." Medina rolled her eyes. "You know what Frieder said yesterday. Keep an eye on Brooke's subordinates, because she suspected their supposed job overseas was only a cover-up for something else!"

"And they think we won't know just because he'd given himself a different wardrobe. Yeah, yeah, I know."

Just then, Sylla flinched and hurriedly rolled his blinds close. McTiennan cursed under his breath.

"Don't worry; I got pictures." Medina lifted her camera for assurance. "And we're pretty much done here."

"I think we should wait. Sylla seemed a little too worried."

They observed the stillness of the building through blinds. In a matter of minutes, Sylla rushed out and sped away in his own car.

McTiennan smirked. "I don't know where he's going, but we should bust in and take a look at what he has."

"You go in; I'll keep an eye out."

Medina followed her partner into Sylla's temporary hideout. They found it unlocked; hence, a forced entry was unnecessary. She gazed out the window to look out for Sylla; McTiennan looked through the various files and folders in the drawers.

"Let's see here..." he mumbled as he flipped through a folder. "Hm, I recognize these girls. Remember when the Browns went missing and nobody could tell where they went?"

Medina snorted and handed her camera to him. "I do, but just take pictures! We can't waste time!"

"Yeah, sure. On it."

As McTiennan snapped photos of the files, he couldn't help but read a few lines off the documents. _'Evidence of magic... color change in clothes... mysterious woman who came from seemingly out of nowhere...'_

"Just what are these girls up to, nowadays?" McTiennan wondered.

"Shit! Sylla's on his way back!"

"Oh, goodness."

McTiennan tried to arrange the documents as he found them, and he fled with his partner into the roof deck of the building.

"Goodness!" he cried, "Why did we even agree to do this?! Freezer isn't even our boss!"

"I don't know, but I think your pictures of his files can answer us!"

Medina grabbed her camera back. She flipped through the images with a frown that went deeper and grimmer the more each second passed by.

"Okay," McTiennan said, on his binoculars again, "Sylla's in his car again, and there he goes..."

Medina snorted. "Stop looking at him, Joel! We've got something more important to cover!"

"You mean, uncover!" Her partner laughed, much to her annoyance. He did, however, look over the pictures. "Uh, yeah. He's looking into these girls and their apparent magical powers. Get it? Magic!"

"For Brooke! _The_ Jeffrey Brooke!"

"The same guy who's had his team make these force field things to resist natural anomalies and won this really, really, big budget… he’s got what he wants. What’s he gonna do with the girls? Pay his way into being a magical guy or something?”

“Joel, focus!”

“Yeah, but what's he gonna do? He doesn't have any solid proof! No videos, no pictures, no witnesses mean no, it’s not real!"

Medina sighed. "He may not have proof now, but he will get it. One way or another. We should tell Frieder about this, right now."

-o0o-

That day, the memory of the failed treaty bounced about on Elyon's mind again as she flipped through history books. Yesterday was a lovely day spent expressing her gratitude to her adoptive parents, so today was a day dedicated to knowing more about her real parents.

Or, so the young Queen told herself. Her real agenda was to look through what information the scribes recorded of her mother (or her father). Maybe Elyon could get some hints or tips on being a great queen, something more concrete than "help those in need" or "side with justice". She was told that the old political books were thrown out by Phobos as he believed they were blasphemous, but Elyon wanted to hope she could still learn more than through trial and error.

She pulled and pushed books, opened and closed them, flipped the pages and sighed as she read them. So far, her self-research hadn't bore fruit. All Elyon read were the same generic stuff she knew - the late Queen supposedly made people happy, addressed their problems sufficiently, and ruled with the late King in peace for a few years, until Phobos rose to power.

How incredibly disappointing.

The weary Elyon forced herself to leave the royal library and have a meal with her parents. She tried asking them before, but Miriadel told her to ask Trill instead. Elyon's mother must've thought that Trill, pretending to be someone who was once "close" with the late Queen, would've given a more accurate version of the story.

Things had been horrible back then, but Elyon already forgave her mother for that, and there was no one else to ask. Mrs. Rudolph, maybe, but she found her hands full with teaching to do some espionage work for Caleb and the army, and it was difficult to meet up with her these days.

"...Mom?" Elyon asked as she pushed her plate away. "Can you... can you tell me about my mom again?"

"Um, I'm sorry, darling? I don't think I heard that."

Elyon made her voice a little louder. "Mom. I'd like to know about... Queen Weira."

"Hmm, she was a very beautiful woman with red hair and brown eyes. And she loved to dance."

Elyon almost bent the utensils in her hands. “Mom," she said with a commanding tone, "What, do you really know, about, my birth mother?!”

Miriadel bit her lip. Elyon’s hands trembled as the fork and knife broke in her hands. Once again, people were hiding things from her.

“Mom, please!” Elyon stood, dropping her utensils, tears straining down her face. “I don’t know who else I can ask. I don’t trust my own brother, I can't talk to Mrs. Rudolph, and I don't know who else have met my real mother personally! All these new history books mean nothing to me! I want to know about MY mom! This isn't just about me being a daughter; this is also about me being a queen! None of you are queens, but she is!”

Elyon began to sob, her heart hurt again. “And I want to stop making all these mistakes I make every day, so I need to know how to be a queen like her! You all tell me how she's been benevolent, kind, and generous to her people, but none of you can tell me exactly how. None of you can teach me how. Please, Mom! Queen Weira holds the answers to my many questions as a queen, but she's gone, so I only need your memories. Anything. Whatever you know. Please!”

Miriadel wrapped her arms around Elyon. “Oh, darling!”

“I have the right to know about what you know about her! And I don’t even have any other known family! Please, Mom!”

“I’m sorry!” Miriadel sobbed, “I’m so sorry, honey! The truth is that, I don’t know much about the Queen, myself! And I don't know if I can tell you everything I know about her!”

_H-how?!_ And, why didn’t she say this before? Elyon shivered as she tried to look for any hint of a lie in her mother's eyes.

“I never saw her outside of castle business, or even meetings, or any formal events. Those were the only things I was ever invited to!” Miriadel cupped Elyon’s face and stared into the young Queen’s shocked eyes. “I’m sorry, Elyon. I failed you. I failed you as a mother. I wanted the best for you, and I thought that someone like Trill could do it! I thought that you'd be satisfied with these trivial facts, because I don't want to be curious about... about someone like her...”

Elyon swallowed. "Why?"

Miriadel hesitated and looked to Alborn for support, and his face scrunched up as he looked at Elyon. "...honey, your mother... she was a rather secretive person. Among us who have had the pleasure and honor to talk with her personally, I wasn't one of those she trusted. I felt like she always had something to hide. She tries to act as if everything was fine, I know she tries so hard to look like she hadn't cried or lost sleep. She... she had problems, I just don't know what, but I knew she didn't trust Consort Zanden either... and your mother and I can never tell you something like this."

The image of the kind and friendly Queen Weira shattered inside Elyon’s mind, and she held onto Miriadel for support as she wailed. The young Queen felt as if she uncovered something forbidden, but the little girl inside her begged. The little girl wanted to know about the fabled queen everybody kept talking about, whether her mother had a positive or negative reputation. The little girl wished to know outside the fairytale and turn fiction into truth, turn a story into flesh.

Today, Queen Weira might have escaped from Queen Elyon's grasp again, but she left a trail behind. Elyon would pick up on that trail, after she’s done feeling sad about everything.

-o0o-

That day, Caleb had taken half the day off and spent the morning catching up on that much-needed sleep. Cedric was back in his cell, the world was once again safe, so it was safe for Caleb to take a little break. When he woke up, Aldarn was moving about in his room.

“Bro…” Caleb weakly called, still groggy from his slumber. “What’s up…?”

“Your father had some urgent business to take care of, so he called your nanny.” Aldarn winked. “Me!”

“Dude, that is so lame.” Caleb rolled his eyes. “What time is it?”

“Just a little after lunch time.”

“Uh, did you save some for me?”

“Pfft. Of course.”

The ex-rebel leader sat on his bed as his best friend prepared the meal for him. Oh, how long had it been since they enjoyed a peaceful meal like this together? Caleb ravished the potatoes and beef so fast, he almost choked. Good thing Aldarn also had some water to give him!

“Right, Caleb,” Aldarn said, “Vaal is very cooperative. You should go and question him.”

Caleb’s big grin turned into a pouty scowl. “…about that…”

“What?”

“…I… kinda don’t wanna…”

After all that fiasco he threw himself in? Caleb would rather rest for now, but Aldarn’s deep frown said that it was unacceptable.

“Caleb…” came his friend’s stern voice, which he hadn’t heard for a long, long time, “One day, you wanna hurry up and get things over with. The next, you want to take it slow and laze about. Come on, man, you’re losing your grip!”

“Well… things had been like this since… Kandrakar… uh… kinda banned me?” Caleb frowned. “I didn’t do anything wrong, and yet I got myself grounded.”

Aldarn sat beside him and placed a hand on Caleb’s shoulder. “Yeah. I get it. This thing with Kandrakar seems unfair, but, I’d appreciate it more if you didn’t let this kind of thing destroy your passion. You survived knowing that Nerissa was your mother.”

“That still gives me shivers; thanks for mentioning that.” Caleb gave him a soft punch to the arm.

“Yes, yes, as I was saying—”

“I know. I survived worse and you’ve seen me go through it all and you have enough proof to tell me that this kind of thing can’t kill me because it’s just another one of these times in which I can’t work well because I’m overwhelmed. I get it! It’s just been so difficult to gauge myself into the right direction, more difficult than it was when we were kids!”

“Ew, you’re an adult.”

Caleb almost pushed Aldarn off the bed. “Say that for yourself! You’re older!”

“I’m older, wiser, and calmer.”

“But I’m the best rebel leader there’ll ever be.”

Aldarn shook his head. “Yes, yes, I was once brainwashed into almost killing you and you broke the trance. You’re awesome. You can do it.”

“I can.” Caleb gazed away. “Just… not now.”

“Because you’re not motivated? Because you have so much to do? Because you’re still upset you couldn’t personally give Cornelia your Couple Day gifts?”

“…maybe it’s a mix of everything?” Truth to be told, Caleb didn’t feel anything at all beyond a minor headache from trying to think. Complex affairs registered in his mind as junk, as a hated chore he had to attend to, but had no energy for. “But I do miss Cornelia. A lot. I know it’s only been one week, but it seems like so much time had passed!”

Aldarn hummed. “At least you gave her a gift. I’m sure she won’t mind waiting until… until a more appropriate time.”

“Yeah. Thanks, man.”

“Alright. At least let me help you think of questions for Vaal.”

That sounded rather simple, and Caleb smiled. “I guess we can do that! I wanna start with… what’s his relation with Phobos.”

Aldarn jumped off the bed to place that into paper. “I’ll have to guess that he was one of those who spread and listened to gossip for Phobos.”

“Yeah. The stupid babbler. I remember Phobos saying that.”

His best friend turned to him with a raised eyebrow.  “…Phobos? You got a tip from _Prince Phobos_?”

“Uh.” Caleb’s lips moved about as he tried to remember whether he told Aldarn. _…wait._ “Hey! Everybody knows I got this information from Phobos!”

Aldarn laughed. “Good to know you’re still sharp.” That laugh was almost like music to Caleb’s ears right now. Almost.

“Aldarn, I may be feeling this low, but that doesn’t mean I’m completely numb and dumb to the facts.”

“Of course, you are.”

“Of course!”

-o0o-

That day, the Prison of Infinite City was noisy again. Not only did Cedric fail to escape the cunning of the ex-rebel leader, but also, they had a new member to the line of convicts.

"Vaal!" Phobos called, "How are you doing in your cell, old friend?"

"Don't refer to me so casually, child," said the lower-ranking noble.

"Don't be ridiculous, Vaal. You hadn't answered me with respect at all since you arrived here. Not a story or two for us, who hasn't seen the light of the outside world for weeks?"

"No."

“Oh, but how about the Kingdom of Happiness that you like to talk about so much? I bet you’ve made up another chapter to that ridiculous, never-ending story!”

“I did not.”

Phobos howled with laughter. "See, everyone? See how useless he is? I heard the other day they tried to hold you off for questioning, but the rebel leader couldn't attend to that due to... more pressing matters. Right, Cedric?"

In his cell, the usually lively Lord Cedric had gone quiet. It was as if he'd been replaced by a doppelganger.

"The rebel leader probably cut off his tongue," Miranda quipped, "For good!"

The prince shook his head. "Aww... what a poor, poor baby snake. Just admit it, Cedric. You'll never regain your honor or anything you want, ever again."

Inside his cell, Cedric found the patience to let everyone speak as they wanted to, be it praise or insult. His mind had been preoccupied by the feline warrior he met yesterday. Some mad idea got into his head, he knew, something that went along the lines of, _'She and I are the same.'_

He did not believe it.

Cedric did not know Basiliade through and through, but he knew that it won Kandrakar’s favor, so much that Basiliade held more seats than any planet did on Kandrakar’s lineup of elders. Basiliade emphasized loyalty and commitment above everything else, and he was sure a lot of its youngsters would love to change the status quo, no thanks to the planet’s reputation for being strict and stuck-up.

However, in a way, he was sure that the warrior wanted to break free from these expectations weighing her down. He was also sure he did want to make some sort of connection with her. Perhaps that could be attributed to the fact that she was now the weakest link in the group, though Cedric remembered not seeing neither the Earth Guardian or the Fire Guardian the other day.

Even so, the warrior would never succeed. If she was stubborn, the girls were more stubborn, and if they willed it, they could cast her out and away from Kandrakar’s light. They were, after all, young girls who had power, and when people had power, they wanted nothing more but to trim off the branches that didn’t bear high quality fruit for them and them only.

_‘See? What did I tell you?’_ he imagined himself telling her, _‘Associating with the guardians will only bring you ruin! Join me, and together we will take revenge on those nasty little girls.’_

He snickered. The only problem now was that her loyalty, and it would be long until he could tell her those satisfying words.

Hm. Did he really just consider allying himself with the enemy? And she was not just the enemy – she was an enemy with a very strong sense of loyalty!

Just then, yells and pleas came from the prison entrance.

“Get in, you stupid spider!”

"We're related but we lost contact ever since she came into service of—ow! That hurts!"

Miranda sprung to the edge of her cell. “Hey! I know that voice! Let her go, you morons!”

From the entrance came in a group of soldiers trying to drag another spifter woman in. Like Miranda, she was short and she had black hair. The other spifter’s bigger eyes were blindfolded with a cloth that matched her dress, but her red eyes on her forehead were open wide. Her four arms gestured wildly as she resisted the guards.

“Please let me go!” begged the red-eyed spifter. “I had nothing to do with Prince Phobos!”

“She’s right, you morons!” Miranda yelled, “She’s the good cousin and she never embezzled funds or supported Phobos in any way! Let Marietta go!”

“Resisting arrest is against the law, woman,” said one of the soldiers, “Take her in, men.”

Despite the spifter cousins’ claims, the young Marietta was taken behind bars.

“Oh, oh!” she sobbed, “Because of you, Miranda, I am now ruined!”

Miranda groaned. “Put your hands and feet up, Marietta. I’m sure that the ever-so-gentle and kind Queen would grant you a trial to clear your name.”

“Even if I get away, I am still ruined!”

Once a convict, always a convict.

“But not as ruined as Lord Cedric, nope.”

“Are you still seeing him, cousin?! You may have been engaged, but to associate yourself with such a horrible person…!”

“Marietta, even though I’m the evil cousin, I still have something called ‘standards’.”

As the whole prison roared with laughter, Cedric scowled in his cell. Perhaps he wasn’t as patient as he thought he was.

-o0o-

That day, Taranee made the decision to tell her mom about the dance school, and left Sheffield early. Irma decided to hang out with Martin, Alchemy pulled Cornelia away to share beauty tips, and Will had been so upset the whole day, her sentences don’t even make so much sense! Matt was more of Will’s friend and he also had band practice with Joel, Peter, and Nigel. Eric already promised his grandfather to clean out his room by tonight.

That left Hay Lin with almost nothing to do but hang around the art room, until she was bored enough to go home.

When she woke up earlier that day, Yan Lin and Meera Lin left a note on her door, telling her they’d gone to Kandrakar. Their excuse to her parents were “old family affairs”, but Chen Lin wasn’t too worried about them.

Hay Lin was, though.

Their group seemed to be falling apart and Kandrakar might fire all of them. Taranee quit. Cornelia continued to be at odds with Will. Irma was too distracted with Sylla. And Orube… Orube, the darling, she wasn’t just performing well.

Oh! Maybe she was free. Then, if they could hang out, Hay Lin might be able to figure out the reason behind the warrior’s behavior!

She went on her way to Mrs. Rudolph’s house and knocked on the door.

“Hey! Or—ahem. Rebecca! It’s Hay Lin!”

A minute passed by, but Orube hadn’t come to receive her.

“You here to see the weirdo?”

Hay Lin looked around and saw someone by the gate. It must be a neighbor. She smiled. “Well, she’s my friend! I’m sure she’s just a little busy at the moment.”

“Don’t count on it. Last night she was breaking things for some insane reason I’ve no clue about. You should get her in a mental institution. I reckon she needs it badly.” The man shrugged and went on his way.

The confused Air Guardian looked around once more, and once she confirmed the coast was clear, she turned invisible and flew around the house, trying to locate Orube through the windows. Well… Hay Lin sure couldn’t see any broken furniture, but she could see how bare it was. The Air Guardian flew to the next window and found Orube in the middle of the room, bandaging her hands… and her legs.

“I hope this isn’t because of last night!” Hay Lin understood that Orube would be a little upset, but, to this extent? There had to be a reason behind it! She couldn’t kill herself over this—

_‘This is Hallinor. We need you guardians in Kandrakar! Now!’_

The voice disappeared as soon as the message ended. Hay Lin took a look at the troubled Orube. Poor thing.

“I’m sorry… I… I need to go. But we can talk next time, okay?” the Air Guardian whispered, and flew away to gather with the girls.

-o0o-

That day, just like that one fateful night not too long ago, the guardians received yet another nasty surprise. (Just. Their. Fucking. Luck.)

“What do you mean, surrender the astral drops?!” Cornelia complained, her voice almost echoing in Kandrakar’s main hall.

“Summon the astral drops,” Himerish instructed, “And I will take care of the rest.”

Though reluctant, the five did as the Oracle told. Will had been most reluctant, and seeing her astral drop back in a naïve state like the first time the double appeared… it almost made Will cry. Her astral drop… her altermere… The other Will only smiled back at her. Will had a feeling that this would be their final meeting.

It would be for the greater good.

Himerish waved his hand and the astral drops were surrounded by energy. Their bodies began to fade from the feet up. Will forced herself to look away. _Goodbye, my almost-sister… forever…_

“This is to ensure you wouldn’t use them again for your selfish needs,” Himerish explained.

“What?! I’m not even planning on using mine again!” Taranee commented, but she was ignored.

“Next. Hay Lin, come closer.”

Hay Lin trembled as she approached Himerish. He looked to the Council of elders – so many elders! Where had they been when Nerissa and Phobos stormed into Kandrakar? Will hadn’t even known who these people were, and yet she and her team was subjected to their opinions and decisions!

“Hariya, would you please?” Himerish requested, and a dwarf – a rather tiny person with pointed ears and antennae – went to him with a huge hourglass on their shoulders. The Oracle took the hourglass and placed it in Hay Lin’s hands.

The girls gasped. The hourglass hovered above her palms and turned over and over for a few times as it shrunk into a pendant. It floated around Hay Lin for a while before it hung itself over her neck.

“W-what is this, Oracle?” she asked.

“That is the Breath of Time.” Himerish smiled. “It is a magical artifact that allows you to temporarily pause time for Heatherfield. You will use it in the astral drops’ stead.”

“Huh?! But, why me?”

“The Council decided,” Luba answered, “That they cannot hand this to Will as she holds the Heart. Taranee is disqualified because she did not want responsibility—”

“I quit!” Taranee clarified.

“—while Irma seems irresponsible, and Cornelia’s temper isn’t suitable to hold such a precious object.”

Will groaned. Her teammates began to voice disagreement and contempt, but she just wanted this to be all over. Back in Heatherfield, she left her father at the mercy of his in-laws-to-be, and she really, really wanted to go back right now. He was much more in need than she was, and Kandrakar’s words were testing her patience.

“How sure are you that this would even work?!”

“Again, you guys just took control of us, and you decided on these things without even asking for our opinions!”

“Come on! We’re doing our job to the best we can!”

“I don’t think I’m ready for this responsibility!”

Tibor held his hands out. “Silence, all you! Silence!” The guardians complied one by one, albeit reluctantly.

Himerish then explained, “This is to keep you disciplined. The Breath of Time will only allow you to pause time when you are in your guardian forms.”

Taranee nodded slowly. “I’m assuming that it means at least Hay Lin and Will have to be transformed before it could pause time.”

“You’re correct, Taranee.”

“And why didn’t you give this to us before?”

“Because it wasn’t necessary.”

“Wow, thanks.”

“One more thing: you will try to negotiate with Ari one last time, and one final time only.”

The girls looked at each other. Would it really be over, just like that? How anticlimactic!

“If you fail once more, you will be on probation for a year and have limited access to your powers.”

It wouldn’t be that bad, right? If they had more time to themselves, then maybe all Heatherfield-related problems would be solved, which then would allow the girls to solve extraterrestrial problems, right? Will prayed nobody would object—

“That’s insane!” Cornelia screeched. Oh, shit. “You yourselves couldn’t even solve the problem in Arkhanta!”

Himerish tried to smile. “If we cannot ask Ari to free the banshee, then we can only try to prevent him from attacking Kandrakar.”

Just like with Nerissa, and Phobos, and their own minions. Wonderful. Will questioned the stability of the fortress even more than she did yesterday. Kandrakar couldn’t be this unstable if they presided over the guardians’ affairs and the guardians’ enemies were stronger than the fortress’ elders! Will then questioned her sanity – she had to be dreaming this up; this had to be some nightmare she couldn’t wake up from!

“As Ari’s hate grows, so does the power of his banshee. It is not that she actively feeds on his hate; it is his hate that forces her to grow stronger. It is only recently that her power had extended and reached the fortress, which is why until we called you, Ari had been nothing more than a negligible nuisance.”

Cornelia huffed. “If we’d known this since day one, maybe things could’ve gone better. And aren’t you even going to question why your precious, incompetent protégé warrior isn’t even here?”

Luba shifted. “We will talk to Orube when you return home.” Her voice was softer and gentler, unlike the way she talked to the guardians. What a detailed nightmare.

“Well, can we return home, now?”

Himerish smiled. “Of course. If you have no more questions regarding these matters, that is.”

“Oh, oh!” Hay Lin raised her hand. “Where are my grandmas?”

From one of the doorways, out came Yan Lin and Meera Lin. “Present!” they said in unison, and joined Hay Lin.

“Remember, guardians,” the Oracle continued, “Do not forget your duty. Put it above everything else and success will surely follow.”

Will didn’t know about that, and when she returned to Heatherfield, she didn’t know what to feel about Kandrakar anymore. Surprise after surprise gave her the idea that, when she accepted the Heart, she’d thrown herself into a frightening world where she wasn’t sure of a future. Taranee had been right. In a way, maybe Cornelia operated on a good, sensible logic to start with.

She grabbed the Heart from her bag and threw it against the restroom wall. Because of this thing… because of this cursed amulet that gave her powers and the illusion of being able to do anything and everything…!

“Don’t ever come back to me or my life,” Will barked at it, and ran back to her father’s side.

-o0o-

That day, Orube was called to the Council, and she immediately knew what this meant.

“Please don’t take me back to Basiliade!” she pleaded before the elders of Kandrakar, “I have done nothing to merit such a cruel punishment!”

“You may not have done anything to merit a punishment,” Himerish said, “But we might’ve been wrong in pronouncing you the best student of the season. The elders have agreed that, once you and the guardians fail your last and final attempt to sway Ari’s mind, you will have a rematch with Ih-Shui.”

No. _No, no, no!_ She would never have a rematch; she would never have to be judged by all those hateful eyes again. Luba promised her that. Orube’s beloved teacher promised her that she’ll never have to be subjected to a crowd of eyes that expect of her to achieve something of an astronomically impossible quality.

After all those lies Luba told her about herself… after all those lies about what she can do… Orube was not going to let her dream take a step back, just because she failed to understand the guardians. Her wounds itched again.

“I apologize, Orube. We’ve inconvenienced you.”

“No, Oracle. _I_ inconvenienced you. A-and the guardians…” Orube gulped. “It will not happen again. I will be more diligent next time!”

“This is the last chance we are giving you and the guardians. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“But don’t fret! If you win the match, you will go back and assist Kandrakar once more. However, the elders will need more time to deliberate on how you would assist us.”

Orube bowed before the Council. “I thank you for giving me this precious opportunity.”

“Do your best.”

When she returned to Heatherfield, Orube hurled and crushed a few Earthling objects under her fists and feet in a pathetic attempt to feel more of the pain and none of the shame. Though her soles were bloodied, she still carefully threaded through the glass shards and sharp pieces of wood on the floor. None of these objects made sense to her when they were whole; now that they were in pieces, she knew they were garbage and they should be thrown out.

Like her.

She had so much in common with these broken pieces, much more than the guardians, much more than that Lord Cedric who tried to sway her. They all had purpose; she didn’t.

Orube carefully packed up the garbage into a black bag, which, as the guardians’ leader taught her, was solely used for garbage. Maybe she should put herself inside too.

Staring at one of the shards she put away, she took one and drew a few lines across her bare leg. How pretty the red could’ve been. But, oh, this was a reminder of shame. This was a reminder of failure.

She rushed into the cleaning room and hastily placed bandages on herself. Ow! Her feet hurt! …right, she stepped on shards and wood. Carefully, very carefully, she removed the debris.

She deserved this pain, but it still wasn’t painful enough.

Orube returned to her room and grabbed her sword. She dragged her feet out the house and into a place that seemed like the forest.

She began to cut the trees into half, one by one. Every single one, she was determined to fell. She was strong. She was worthy. She was befitting of her role; she just hadn’t pushed herself to her best. She was only lying; she hadn’t done her best at all. She was slacking off those days because she had excuses not to be at her best, but now no excuse would save her from showing a dismal performance.

The best student of Luba’s class? Hah. Orube was a joke. They spent so much time looking at her, that she fooled everyone into thinking she was perfect – the most loyal, the most brilliant, the strongest, so and so forth…

She swung her sword again and again. She only called it a day when her vision blurred. She might not have crushed all the trees, but she wanted nothing more than to sleep. Her body ached and she could not force it any more. But, the pain made her smile a little. She already paid a good fraction of what she owed to the world. Tomorrow would be another day to scrunch up some payment.

Orube wouldn’t know that the inhabitants of Heatherfield would be puzzled to know that some bloke in white and pink tried to kill all the trees in a local park.

-o0o-

That day, Ilse gathered the children. It had become clear to her that, sooner or later, they would have to leave their land to survive. She both wanted and didn’t want to make the choice for them, but in the end, she would still be held responsible.

She chose to tell them a story first.

“In the beginning, there were the four…” she started, but decided it would be too long to even start from the very beginning of things. “…well, does anyone have a problem if I jumped to the middle?”

The children looked at each other. “You don’t even started yet.” “Whatcha mean, Big Sis?” “I don’t know. What’s the story?”

Ilse beamed at them. How she wished she could go back to being like them. “Alright, alright. I’ll continue.” The simpler, the better. Wasn’t that their day-to-day verse?

The children quieted, and she took a deep breath.

“Long ago, a sacred sanctuary called Kandrakar took Arkhanta under its wing. Kandrakar sent its guardians, agents who bring balance to the world, so they can settle a long dispute between the Seelie and Unseelie Courts. The dispute was making it almost impossible for humans to live in peace. The world was in peril, because the fae were fighting and ruining the land.”

“What was the dispute?” Figo asked.

“Well, it’s too difficult to explain…” Ilse scratched her head. How could she simplify those affairs? “But they couldn’t decide on a solution, despite talking about it!”

“Wow, they sound complicated!”

Ilse almost laughed. True. Old people were rather complicated.

She then continued, “The guardians are women with powers relating to that of a creation of a world – earth, water, air, fire, and quintessence. They helped the Fae Courts settle the dispute. In honor of this, they altogether opened up two realms for the faefolk to organize and rule over as they please, one for the Seelie Court, and one for the Unseelie Court.”

“They’re strong! Are they beautiful too?” “Can I be a guardian?” “What’s the difference between the realms?”

“Children, children. Remember; we don’t answer questions until I’m finished!” With stern eyes, Ilse calmed the excited children. “The two sides chose and built their kingdoms on their respective realms. Meanwhile, the guardians taught the humans of Arkhanta to overcome their fear.

“Once all these peoples found stable settlements, Kandrakar and its guardians left Arkhanta to its own. For a while, things prospered.

“However, one day, the strongest and most powerful of the fae queens dared to pursue her love with a human. The queen held enormous power, and the faefolk thought that the human would use her for his own, selfish needs. Even so, she gave birth to their child.

“The half-fae, or a changeling as we call them, grew up in their father’s care. From afar, their queen mother would watch over them and charm them so they would be strong and healthy… like you!”

A few children laughed.

“Fearing that the changeling would alter the fate of Arkhanta forever, Kandrakar sent its guardians again to calm everyone, including the queen, her lover, and their child. This problem was settled when the queen transferred all her powers into a massive boulder that we now know of as the Heart of Arkhanta.”

Ooh’s and aah’s came from the children.

“The guardians would come every once in a while to check on the courts, the changeling, and the Heart. Over time, the task of watching over the Heart was passed onto the changeling and their family.”

Ilse paused, and the children clapped.

“What a great story!” Figo cheered. “So what’s the difference between the Seelie and Unseelie Courts again?”

“They’re basically just a separation between those who use aether and nether energy.” Ilse winked. “But, the point is, this isn’t just a story.” She watched the glee in the children’s eyes fade into confusion. _Here it comes, here it comes…_ “Lodi heard that the guardians have come to our land again.”

“Because it’s dying?! I heard Lodi and Elder Dai talking about it!”

“…I don’t know, Figo. I don’t know if they know. But I do know that one day… one day, we’ll have to leave home.”

Other children joined Figo’s worried questioning. “But why?” “Why, Big Sis?” “I don’t wanna leave home! Can we not leave home?”

“I don’t want to leave home either. I’m sad if I’m not at home, too.” Ilse tried to smile at them. “But… Elder Dai and your parents will grow sadder if we don’t leave. Because, if Arkhanta dies while we’re still here… we’ll be gone too.”

“But we won’t be gone-gone, right? Right?”

Ilse shook her head. “No. We’ll all be gone-gone. Even the Seelie and Unseelie Courts. Everything.”

“Where will we go?”

The young de-facto leader of Ledona stared out the window. She hated this answer, because she didn’t trust anyone from that place. She could never trust anyone from that place, not with the current circumstances.

Hate and sorrow boiled in her heart. If _that_ _person_ chose not to go, if _that_ _person_ only made better decisions… then the whole of Ledona wouldn’t have to resort to something like this.

“Big Sis…? Where do we go?”

“…Kandrakar.”

-o0o-

Later that day, a man named Jeffrey Brooke cursed under his breath and stood off his swivel chair. He landed on a jackpot, a hot deal that he needed to grab and protect before anyone else realized what it was. He had very clever subordinates who snagged this deal for him, and they were closer and closer to their goal. It progressed so slowly at first, but now it picked up pace.

Brooke read the files on his desk again. Wilhelmina Vandom. Irma Lair. Taranee Cook. Cornelia Hale. Hay Lin Lin. Five special girls with powers. Five little girls who would lead them to what he wanted.

According to Riddle’s report, these were the girls who made that big cartoon show on the big screen in Heatherfield’s business district. It wasn’t too far to attribute the show to the girls’ powers, but it wasn’t too off the theory to say that they had friends who helped them do it. The show wasn’t an actual promotional cartoon for the season, but a simplification of a magical battle that took place in Heatherfield. Sylla recounted proof of that, as a hailstorm couldn’t have possibly caused that sort of damage.

Sylla also submitted further proof: Irma Lair changing the colors of her clothes freely. Wilhelmina Vandom suddenly disappearing and reappearing inside a janitor’s closet. The girls always sticking to each other and whispering. Their only other friends preferring to interact with teens outside of the group.

They had a secret, and it was a magical secret. Sylla had assumptions that a certain Matthew Olsen might be part of the secret, as was Cornelia Hale’s sister, Lillian Hale. There was also this other woman who they only knew as “Rebecca Rudolph”, but when Sylla asked around the campus or the neighborhood, nobody knew who she was or how she was related to Mrs. Rudolph. Some sort of anomaly surrounded the Silver Dragon restaurant, which Hay Lin Lin’s parents owned, which made it hard for radio waves to be transmitted.

They only needed a more solid proof, something caught on tape, on camera. Brooke wanted to see things for himself, too. He wasn’t someone who believed in magic and aliens that easily, but Riddle—

“Do you have some time, Mr. Brooke?”

Brooke scowled when he saw a rather unwelcome face by the doorway. Nora Frieder. Or _Freezer_ , as everyone liked to call her behind her back.

“Why, Ms. Frieder!” He shrugged. “I’m wrapping up for today, actually.” He struggled to stretch his lips to an annoying smile.

“I guess you are, when you’re stuck there on your seat smiling so happily!”

“Oh, was I? Well, I’m happy to have done a day’s worth of work and more!”

“Of course, you are.”

Brooke knew that Frieder had suspicions about him. Her assumptions were probably correct, but by the time she’d figure it out, it should be too late for her to take. Should be.

“Anyway, what are you here for, dear Ice Queen of the Execs?”

“Is that what they call me now, not _Freezer_?”

“What a sense of humor, Ms. Frieder.”                                          

Freezer, as in, a corpse revitalized from the body freezer. Old Hag Frieder didn’t laugh. She never wore a smile all throughout their conversation, and forcing one out of her right now was even more impossible. “…the big boss wants you to report on Riddle and Sylla’s progress and he wants it submitted by tomorrow lunch time. Heard they went to the Bahamas. Lucky, aren’t they?”

“Oh, Nora Frieder, dear Madam, you know that’s not how we do things around here! We make reports when they get back and that’s how the pipeline goes!”

“Well, that’s what the boss said.”

“Oh, well, what can I do?”

Frieder turned around and left.

Curses. Brooke assumed she had something to do with it. Why not, when she had the big boss’s favor for being his spy among his subordinates and colleagues?

Brooke pulled out a folder from his drawer. Frieder had been involved back then when something involving five maybe special women had happened, too, and he wasn’t even out of middle school yet. A group comprised of Nerissa Crossnic, Cassidy Chacon, Kadma Starlighter, and Hallinor Clarkson suddenly vanished, and their common friend Yan Lin Lin had been a prime suspect. However, when facts regarding the four’s apparent lesbianism surfaced, the investigation was pushed aside and ruled out as a pair of lesbian couples running away from their restrictive, conservative lives.

But while a few sources did claim that the five women did show bits of magical power, Frieder had reported this was nothing but hearsay and strange but fake wiccan practices, the kind that many young women believed in and was crazy about on the same level as tarot cards and fortune-telling.

Tch. Like he’d believe that, especially now that he had further proof something was going on. There was some sort of system. Many years ago, five women. This year, five girls.

Brooke believed in some form of magic, but he did not believe in this bogus Nora Frieder made up. She might be old, but she was still sharp. She, too, had to be hiding something. He didn’t know what that was, but he knew that he had a race against her.

And he was determined to win it.

-o0o-

Later that day, Hay Lin locked herself in her room, feeling like she’d done something very wrong. Everything about WITCH, about Kandrakar, about guardianhood and their mission; everything felt wrong.

“Hay Lin?” her grandmas called. “Hay Lin, please.”

Hay Lin tried to block them out by drawing furiously, but nothing came out good. Her dragon doodles looked nothing like dragons and more like squiggles.

Now that Hay Lin thought of it, why didn’t her grandma teach her all about this stuff? Sure, Yan Lin wouldn’t have a body capable of teaching them, but at least, she could’ve run over the concepts. Yan Lin, who had been a guardian herself, would’ve known what to do, would’ve had some of the answers they sought, and would’ve had the wisdom to share regarding this.

Yan Lin could’ve told them about the older guardians.

Yan Lin could’ve warned them and guided them.

Yan Lin could’ve… could’ve… could’ve…

Hay Lin curled on her bed and cried. She would never believe it, but now it was impossible to deny. Nerissa’s cruel words and deeds came back to her, and the same pain and suffering surfaced in Hay Lin’s heart.

Yan Lin, her grandma, betrayed her.

Hay Lin stared at the magical hourglass around her neck. She should’ve never received this. It should’ve been Cornelia. Or Taranee. Or maybe even Irma! But Hay Lin? Her? She was unfit for this role! What came over those thirty- or forty-something strangers of Kandrakar? Why did they give such a powerful object to her? She too was irresponsible like Irma, but she never handled something this important, and she didn’t trust herself to handle something this important!

The Air Guardian had been wrong about being a magical girl all along. She didn’t like it. She didn’t want it. Everything felt like a burden. She would rather work in the restaurant for 24, 48, even 72 hours straight than feel this stupid or helpless or awfully terrible, that she wished she was normal instead.

Ugh. She wished she was normal again. She wished she wasn’t involved in this horrible thing and she wished her friends (or ex-friends?) weren’t too.

Somehow, she now knew why Orube would be so upset. Kandrakar’s way of things were just… so bad.

However, thinking of Orube also gave Hay Lin stirred a dab of jealousy somewhere inside her. Orube wasn’t a guardian. Orube didn’t see one of her friends get manipulated into hurting her or almost die because everyone hesitated. Orube didn’t see her grandma get hypnotized into a soldier of evil.

Hay Lin decided: she hated Orube. (Maybe if she hated Orube, then Cornelia would have enough reason to keep doing her duty, and _maybe, eventually, Taranee would realize she missed everybody and she would take her resignation back, and maybe, maybe, maybe…)_

-o0o-

Later that day, Taranee pushed away all thoughts of Kandrakar, took her brother aside, and said, “Help me tell Mom. Tonight.”

Peter winked. “Got it.”

Kandrakar might have ruined the day, but Taranee wouldn’t let it ruin her big reveal. She encouraged herself in front of the mirror several times. Her guardian life shouldn’t mess up her personal life, and she wouldn’t let it get in the way of her dreams.

Then, the Cooks sat down for dinner and the reveal commenced.

“I really, really love this salmon for dinner, Mom!” Peter announced.

Theresa glanced at him and back to her food. “I know you too well, Peter Lancelot Cook. Now, out with it and your news.”

“Well, the news isn’t really about me…” Peter slid next to Taranee and gestured. “It’s about someone we all know love!”

“E-er, yeah, Mom!” Taranee laughed.

“Wait, hold it, sis. Can I say it? I love being the center of attention when it comes to news. A-ahem.”

Words went over Taranee’s head as she ate and watched Peter do his magic. She watched her parents’ reactions very carefully. Fire thrummed in her heart as she turned her gaze to her mother ever so often; she knew her dad would overcome his initial doubts really easily.

“Afternoon courses?” Lionel asked, “You sure it won’t coincide with class?”

“Yeah. Taranee’s new friend, Sheila, is a transferee to Sheffield! …well, she’ll start next week, but she’s the daughter of the academy’s owner and she too likes hip hop, so I don’t think Taranee will have trouble sliding this into her schedule either!”

“That’s great! It sounds like an excellent opportunity, Taranee!”

“Hmm…” While her father had been encouraging, her mother was… very doubtful. Theresa hadn’t said a thing all throughout, and her tone of voice wasn’t really very encouraging. “That takes a lot of effort and time! What about your health? Are you sure you can maintain it without affecting your grades? A lot of young athletes and stars have to skip school for a while to pursue their passions, Taranee, and that is a fact I always hear among my peers.”

Oh, dear. What could get worse, indeed?

Taranee, hurt by her mother’s silence and doubts, stormed off to her room with her dinner unfinished. So much for trying to channel out that negativity.

“Why are you always so negative, Mom?” she sobbed, remembering how Theresa disapproved of Nigel, remembering the last night of living at Sesamo, “Why don’t you try sharing my dreams, too?! I don’t understand you!”

But try as she might, the ugly feeling never went away. (It had to be Kandrakar, dammit. Stupid Kandrakar.) To distract herself, Taranee did her homework according to level of difficulty. She prepared for bed, looked through her photos, and after much hesitation, gave Sheila a text message.

Taranee wasn’t just about to give up. She would have her dreams, and they would come to her, no matter the consequences. She wouldn’t let any entity like Kandrakar or even her own mother block the way. She would take control.

Then, a few knocks announced her mother opening her door. Taranee shoved her books and her phone down her bag immediately, pretending to be angry. Well, she still was angry, but she wasn’t ready to forgive her mother just yet.

“I see you’re preparing for tomorrow,” Theresa observed. Well, yeah, what did this look like to her? “Don’t forget your lunchbox, Taranee…” _Don’t treat me like a baby, Mom._ “And don’t forget to ask Sheila about the definite schedules for each class!”

Taranee almost dropped her bag to the floor. “M-mom?”

“If you’ve made a choice, take it seriously.” Her mother had rather gentle eyes, and Taranee thought it was simply a hallucination. “I expect you to hang out a little less with your friends at school so you can practice and give this passion of yours some time. Is that clear?”

Before Taranee could say anything, Theresa closed the door again.

_…what did I say again? I just don’t understand you, Mom!_

-o0o-

Later that day, in Arkhanta, a satisfied Ari mused of his gain before the view-fold. He might’ve not had the means to spy when the girls went to Kandrakar, but what he saw of their daily lives were sufficient. He now knew how divided they were, doubtful of the system they served. Now, to strike on their weakest link…

Yua announced, "Distrust... doubt... pain, anger, sorrow... we have found... their weaknesses... Master... We should... attack them there..."

Ari frowned at her and rage boiled in his eyes. "I thought I asked you to show me the guardians, Yua, not advise me on how to defeat them!"

He ran down to the artificial swamp and Yua shrunk into the shallow depths of her home. Ari jumped into the pool and took her by the neck.

"A- _aack!_ " she screeched.

"You will never do anything more, or less, than what I ask of you, creature!" Ari reminded, and dropped her to the pool again.

Yua struggled to breathe properly, but Ari caught her by the hair and whispered, "I gave you a better home, away from your evil sisters and what evil influence there is. I showed you how to use your power for the good of every Arkhantan. What have I done against you for you to impose yourself?"

Ari released her again, and this time, Yua retreated to the edge of the swamp.

"Do you... do you not trust me?" Ari asked, "Do you not trust in your lord and master? Have I been wrong all this time?"

"No!" came Yua's shrill answer.

"In that case, please, Yua," her master begged, "Please. Don’t get in my way. Let me figure things out by my own. I will tell you when I need your help, so please, make it easier on me and don’t impose your conclusions on me. Do you understand?"

Yua nodded.

"Do you really understand?"

"Y-yes... my Lord..."

Ari climbed out of the pond. "Then prepare yourself, Yua. Prepare. Those witches will be back in my kingdom, in my castle, and we cannot let them undo the good work you've done so far. And besides, as both you and I have observed, they are not united. They are distracted by their own desires and feelings. We can defeat them. You only need to follow what I say; is that clear?"

“Yes… my Lord…”

Ari went back the way he came from, leaving Yua in the darkness.

And once he was gone, Yua sank into her pool. Not only did the view-fold to the other world took her strength, but she had done this from afternoon to evening. Ari only wanted to make sure he could deal with the enemies! But now, the enemies were coming, and he might want them dead. This would be the third time the guardians would come to the kingdom, and the guardians were needed someplace else, not here!

"...what... have I… done...?" she whimpered, “I wronged him… now I… I have… I have to… warn… warn her…”

Yua watched the water and stirred it several times. Once a familiar figure began to reflect on the surface, she opened a separate view-fold that opened on another side of Arkhanta.

“…please… help me… I don’t want… to kill…”

The person on the other side would sigh. As usual. “Why is it that when you ask me to do things, it isn’t to free you?”

“…don’t need it…”

“…right, right. Sure. I believe you. But, are you sure that’s the only thing you need?”

“I’m… sure…”

“I’ll do my best.”

Yua smiled as she dismissed the view-fold and hung her body on the edge of the pool. As Ari said, it was safer for her to be here, but if these people who mean harm to her and her master kept coming, then what use was it to be here? They should only be on their side, and she would peacefully stay on her side. She made them all go away. She made them all leave. But ah, they were so pesky, so pesky, so stubborn, very stubborn.

She didn’t want to kill them. She didn’t want to kill anyone at all. This could’ve been prevented had they been a little more cooperative. Had they been cooperative, had they listened to Ari, those young girls wouldn’t have to suffer like that!

But, ah… she couldn’t recover her strength at all…

The banshee weakly crawled to the middle of her pool and stuck her hands on the bottom. Cool pink energy danced from the earth to her arms, and to her body. She needed life. She needed the aether to continue living, or else, Maqi would die under her care, and Ari would be sad, and she too would be sad, so, so sad.

If she couldn’t do it for Ari, she would do it for little Maqi. It’s all for Maqi. The two of them could figure everything out; her and little Maqi. They could still live under Ari’s care safely and peacefully.

Yua grinned. “For you…! My sweet… for you…” Once again, she played with the water, lifting a little amount by her hands, and counting the drops that fell.

“Drip… drip… drip…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Fun fact:** only a week has passed within the story timeline! I hope you guys are still enjoying this.


	7. A Recipe for Disaster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recap:**
> 
> In Meridian, Elyon learns that Miriadel never really knew much about Weira, and that Weira was probably not as glorious as most people thought. Caleb takes a short break from his duties but Aldarn helps him list down questions for the interrogation of Vaal. The Prison of Infinite City gets a new prisoner named Marietta, Miranda's cousin, while Cedric tries to get through being the butt of the joke by thinking of how to shame Orube into making an alliance with him.
> 
> In Heatherfield, Will's father takes another step further with Serena and Serena's family, prompting Will to feel even more stressed. Kandrakar calls for the guardians to remove the astral drops, award Hay Lin the Breath of Time, and warn the guardians about their constant failures in their mission. As a result, the girls become more distant from each other, and Hay Lin feels betrayed by her grandmother(s) and everything she believed in.
> 
> Orube too is called to Kandrakar, and feels threatened at the prospect of going back to Basiliade when she is no longer needed. She takes it out on the trees in a Heatherfield park.
> 
> Meanwhile, Interpol Executive Jeffrey Brooke and his team, under which Sylla and Riddle work for, gathered enough initial evidence regarding the guardians' magic. However, Nora Frieder have caught wind of Brooke and co's suspicious activities, and tasked Agents Maria Medina and Joel McTiennan, who previously worked with the guardians, to keep an eye on Sylla and investigate their colleague.
> 
> In Arkhanta, Ari peeks on the guardians' lives and hints that he will rid of them the next time they come. Yua calls for an acquaintance to help her not kill anyone.
> 
> **Warning:** Depictions of self-harm in this chapter (with Orube...again...).

One week.

It had already been a week since Caleb went back to Meridian and Orube was added to the team, but Will felt as if a month had already passed.

She sluggishly lifted herself off the bed and almost crawled to the bathroom.

… _fuck._ Will lied to her mom about last night, and somehow, lying about her own father seemed graver than lying about magic. Ugh, what use was comparing her father to the affairs of the Infinite Dimensions, when she already rejected the Heart?

_Oh, crud, that was just...!_ She rejected the Heart!

"…so, like, does that mean I failed my last chance at the exam even without taking it? Just like that?"

Will laughed to herself. This was fine. She lost her astral drop and lost the Heart. She had no more obligation to Kandrakar. She might still have powers – and Quintessence danced on her trembling hand – but she had no obligation to the world anymore. She was a kid, and she had problems. This was much better than being called on-duty while attending to important personal matters.

Right, right.

Will put on a jolly face in front of Susan and headed to school. Ex-Keeper of the Heart, present, and not late, and wouldn't suddenly disappear in the middle of class, or the rest of school year.

Yes. She should've just done this before. She was missing out on some of the most important days for… what? The sake of the universe she didn't know shit about?

Ha ha. Ha, ha, ha. Ha. Ha. Hah…

Will smiled. She no longer had to pretend to smile. The action came off as so natural and pleasing to her. Hee hee. It felt nice to laugh like this. Ha, ha, ha.

-o0o-

Caleb got up early to ensure he had enough time to do some questioning, err, interrogation. He finished off a few papers before getting up at the appointed time with the compiled list of questions in hand.

Today would be a productive day, darn it. And nobody would be in his way to ruin any of his plans. (No, the cell containing Cedric was stable, almost indestructible, yes, and so were the other cells. Elyon fortified it with her magic rather angrily the other day. Caleb didn't know where she got the idea or why she'd been so upset, but it was good she channeled her fury in a more… productive way.)

Caleb read through the questions again. He might've memorized them, but it wouldn't hurt if he made sure his memory hadn't tricked him. He was due to ask Vaal about Phobos, the bandits, and perhaps, Vaal's position too when Queen Weira was still on the throne. While the primary concern was (and still was, as it should be) the case of the bandit raids, Aldarn suggested that the surviving enemies of Queen Weira herself should be given due proceedings as the laws of Meridian commanded.

Caleb pocketed the piece of paper and smiled his most confident smile.

"Alright!" He announced when he arrived in the interrogation room. "Let's get to business!"

On the other end of the room, there sat Vaal on a chair too low, it made him seem as if he was a child. Caleb fought the urge to laugh in the prisoner's already very funny face.

"Vaal the Useless," Caleb said.

"Yes." Vaal's green head bobbed in response. His fats made his flesh look so gelatinous.

"Ahem. How would the likes of you, who hid out in this very beautiful and quiet cottage on the farther edge of town, relate to the tyrant Phobos?"

Vaal made motions to speak – "Actually, I—" – but he started coughing and hacking and wheezing. Eventually, he fell off the chair.

"Dude, buddy!" Caleb said as the other men in the room helped Vaal back on the seat. "I just asked you if you served Phobos!"

"Y... yes... ugh!" Vaal's face was rather grim. "And no."

What kind of an answer was that? Caleb frowned. "Prince Phobos of the Escanor line. You worked for him, did you not?"

"...yes."

"Oh, good!" Caleb forced himself to smile. This couldn't be boding well. "In that case, would you happen to know who else like you is out there, trying to hide from the law and their supposed new queen?"

"No."

Rats. "Well, what do you know about the case of the bandit raids? Is there a missing factor we're not seeing and you've been hiding? Is there someone behind this movement?"

Vaal paled, but he didn't answer.

Oh, _good_. Caleb shared disappointed eyes with the other guards. This was even worse than interrogating someone who tried to deny everything.

-o0o-

Birds chirped in the distance as Ilse set out to do her lineup of tasks for the morning. Earlier when the sun still wasn't up, she helped the adults prepare breakfast. After breakfast, she and the adults tended to their land, diligently checking their crops for pests and weeds.

She allowed herself half an hour of rest, and now, she had a class to teach.

An infant cousin rested against her shoulder, as she taught medicine to the kids. This class would only last for a while; she had something more important to do.

"While there are many plants that aid and supplement our health," she said, "You should understand that each and every of them have side-effects effects too. There are always drawbacks, and the most dangerous one is when you use medicines that, together, trigger bad side-effects."

"But sis!" Figo raised his hand. "If they are bad for us, why do we still take them?"

"Because the good outbalance the bad, simple as that. This is why we don't eat medicinal plants every day. This is also why, sometimes, we prescribe different medicines for the same illness."

"Can't we just use magic to heal people?"

"As much as I'd like that to happen, not all of us are born with healing magic." Ilse smiled at Figo.

"Big sis! Big sis!" said Figo's brother, "Tell us more about healing magic!"

"Err, well. Most of our clan is born with the healing magic. A few aren't." Ilse's lips pointed and made elliptical motions. "Oh, well, that's for a more advanced class anyway."

"But this is sooo boring!"

The other children cheered in agreement. Ilse sighed and shook her head. "Oh, you kids."

"I'll take it from here," a gruff voice said. It was Elder Dai, and when Elder Dai hosted classes, the kids hated it. They moaned in dismay as the old woman stood next to Ilse. "See, Ilse here is busy."

Ilse nodded and gave the infant to her grandmother. "I'm sorry. I'll be back as soon as possible," Ilse whispered.

"Lodi will help you get there. Be careful."

"I will."

Ilse left the hut and prepared for her journey. She grabbed a cape and a reed hat, and she met Lodi by the entrance of their little town. He too wore a similar cape and reed hat. Heh. The sun was really too hot at this time of the year, and it was getting worse. And Big Dick King, also known as Ari, was of no help at all.

"I'm sorry; this is all I can do to help," Lodi said as he helped Ilse up his mare. "I wish I could do more."

"Me too, but… if this is our fate, then it will be our fate. At the least, we can spare a few lives from… well… haha…" Ilse's voice trailed off, despite forcing herself to smile.

Lodi then sat behind Ilse and steered the horse out of the seemingly dark forest. They would still pass through seven rivers and forests before they could reach the closest town, and they had to win against time. After that, Ilse only needed to bet against people's personal beliefs.

Tch. They were incredibly tough barriers to break. _Right… sis?_

-o0o-

The school bell rang in Sheffield Institute, and kids came running out of their classrooms towards the lame, unchanging cornucopia of the cafeteria. A thankful Irma headed for the water fountain to drink and quench her thirst. For some reason, today gave her an almost unbearable thirst. It was probably the effect of yesterday's rather disappointing news, though was it so bad to have a temporary vacation with some limitations?

Irma didn't share everybody's opinions. She'd like to have a break, too. Besides, they were too young to spend their time dancing around in the danger pits of various alien planets in the cosmos.

Irma wiped water from her mouth and dragged her feet away. She bumped into someone, and she smiled as she looked up to him.

"Woah, there, Ms. Lair!"

"Oh, Mr. Sylla! Hi!" she greeted, her voice rather raspy. Ugh, he shouldn't see her like this. "Um... I gotta go..."

"You don't look so good." Sylla angled his head several times, observing her face. She couldn't be blushing, please _oh please great guardians of the past let her not blush right now, please._ "Maybe you should go to the school nurse later."

"D-don't worry about it! I'm fine!"

"Ms. Lair, you can't keep attending class looking like you're out of sleep. Are you having trouble after class? I can take you to the counselor later."

Oh, geez! Irma would love to take to opportunity, but not right now! "M-maybe. Um. I should really... go. Yeah." She nodded and began to walk away. "Gotta eat first! Haha!"

"Ms. Lair?"

The Water Guardian felt so, so thirsty. And with her object of affection coming around, her body temperature rose. Just what the hell was going on with her body right now?

"Probably hungry..." Irma told herself, but she remembered they discussed in Biology class that eating food causes heat to the body. This couldn't be... natural.

Irma kept licking her dry lips as she grabbed onto her food tray and walked towards their usual table. She half-expected Taranee and Cornelia to be there, but they were on the other side of the hall. Interesting.

At the least, Matt, Hay Lin, and Will were still at the usual table. Will was giggling about something, and those giggles were creepy, very creepy as fuck. Hay Lin, like she had been in the past few hours, was a little shaky, and she was breathing a little too hard. Probably cold, Irma thought, but it's difficult to ask when she herself had a problem.

"Uh, you girls okay?" Matt asked. See? Even Matt could see things! "Will?"

"Yeah, yeah," Will said and looked up. Geez. She looked way worse than Irma herself did, with those dark rings under her eyes. "I was just thinking... you guys wanna get milkshake later?"

"Uh, sure? I mean, if we have time, I guess?"

"Thanks, Matt. Love ya."

"C-can't... breathe..." Hay Lin began coughing. Irma stood from her seat to pat Hay Lin's back and hopefully relieve her of the pain.

"Geez, Will!" Irma complained - ugh, her voice was shit and hoarse! - "Why are you thinking of cold drinks when we clearly need something a little... warmer?"

Will laughed. Irma thought it was a little too similar with Nerissa's, but it had to be the unquenchable thirst. "Who cares?"

"And, may I so graciously remind you how we need to be in Kandrakar later?"

"Who cares! I already threw out the Heart!"

Irma could've choked on air, but it was Hay Lin who did, while Matt almost choked on his food.

"I got rid of the thing that caused us problems!"

Irma slammed a fist against the table. "On one hand, that's very brave of you! On the other, what the hell are you throwing it out for, when we've risked neck and leg to keep it within our reach for the past two years?!"

"Are you angry? You should be amazed at my genius!"

_Arrrggghhh!_ "Both!" Irma yelled with what voice she had, and stormed off to gulp down water. Dammit, this talk was making her thirstier and thirstier, and Hay Lin, she was coughing and coughing and gasping for air—

Hay Lin was out of air.

Irma herself was thirsty.

Will didn't have the Heart of Kandrakar.

Oh no. _Oh no no no no no no._

Now that Irma thought of it, Taranee was kinda shivering in class earlier! She was cold, because her element was rebelling against her!

"Will, wait!" Irma struggled to go back to Will's side. Sheesh. Will looked like shit, and Irma was sure she wasn't hallucinating the miasma forming around Will right now. "I think... I think something's wrong!"

"Who cares?!" Will shoved her aside and walked over to Cornelia and Taranee.

"WAIT!"

The two were having lunch rather... peacefully. Cornelia's face was wrapped in a scarf, but her hands weren't gloved. Irma could see how her skin... dried out, like she aged so fast. The opposite of regeneration and growth, no doubt the ability of plants.

"Holy shit..." Irma gasped.

"What's up, ladies..." Will slurred and giggled rather creepily. "I. Got. Rid. Of. The. Heart."

Cornelia's eyes almost bulged out of their sockets; Taranee said things so quickly. Holy shit.

Irma looked back to the other table and shared shocked gazes with Matt. _'Please,'_ Irma mouthed, fearing that people would start staring.

An invisibility spell fell upon the guardians, but Matt fell to the floor. Instantly, Will snapped out of her daze and ran to Matt's side.

"Matt! Matt!" she screamed, over and over. Nobody came to her side.

The other guardians struggled to come over to her, and Hay Lin was almost crawling in pain. Irma held her up for support.

"Will, you absolute shithead!" Irma croaked out, "I'd love to use my powers, but in case you can't see, our powers are going against us!"

"W-what?!" Their surprised leader only froze, holding a weak Matt to her chest. "What do you mean?!"

"It means, do something! I'm thirsty! Hay Lin can't breathe! Cornelia's aged so badly! Taranee's too cold!"

"D-did you try using your powers yet?"

" _Yesyesyesyesyes!_ " Taranee answered, " _Nnononouse!_ "

"We have to go to—"

Kandrakar again, wasn't it?! At the almost-mention of the oh-so-holier-than-thou governing body of space and time and whatever they can't understand in the world, the guardians' faces soured immediately.

"I hate to admit it, Will, but you're damn right," Cornelia said, her voice so deep and old.

"How do we do that, exactly?" Irma asked, "This ingenious babe threw the thing out!"

"I left it in a restaurant bathroom!" Will gasped. "Oh no, what if they threw it out?!"

Irma frowned along with the others. "I'm tired of this shit, Will. Just try something! Do your guardians unite thing!"

"But the Heart—"

" _Just try it!_ Before Matt's power runs out and reveals us!"

Will gritted her teeth and looked at her pained boyfriend. In a small voice, she whispered, "Guardians... unite..."

A familiar bright light enveloped them and then—

_Ah!_ How refreshing it was to be with water again! Irma glided across the cool water as her parched throat finally found relief. She laughed, frolicking about, swimming like a mermaid among bubbles and waves and—

Irma faced the cafeteria toned in black and white like old movies. Holy. _Crap._ She approached a table and nudged it. It gained color and moved with her hand, but as soon as she released it, it stopped in motion, frozen in its state of imbalance.

"What happened?" she asked nobody in particular.

"I can't believe I'm so happy to be a guardian again," Cornelia shrieked, her youth back.

"Me neither!" Taranee agreed, still rubbing her shoulders for warmth, "But now I'm not very happy without my element. I'd hate to be that cold ever again!"

"I can breathe!" Hay Lin announced, and it was a good time for her to be loud. Irma's eyes widened when she noticed the pendant hung from her friend's neck, shining brightly...

"The Breath of Time!" The girls gasped out.

"You're a savior, buddy." Irma flicked a finger at the hourglass. "But I don't like the mechanics for activating you."

"Matt, Matt!"

Another loud voice took everyone's attention. Will gave soft slaps to Matt's cheeks to keep him awake, but his eyelids kept drooping.

"S... sorry..." he murmured, before completely passing out.

Will cried out, but Cornelia pushed her out of the way and checked on Matt's vitals. "He's good, don't worry."

"Since when were you a doctor?!" Will asked, but Taranee got between them.

"Okay, cut it out," Taranee said, "We know the deal. We need to go to Kandrakar… as much as I hate that."

"And we need to know how we're able to transform even without the Heart," Irma added. "But I sure hope they give us a free ride, because as you can see, we don't have the Heart to open a fold!"

Hay Lin placed the Breath of Time on their table and covered it with a napkin for... good measure? "Let's just hope that when we get there, they actually answer us."

"Crossing fingers for luck." For good measure it was.

Then, a fold opened in their mid. It was, no wonder, from Kandrakar. The girls frowned; no wonder they would be scolded once they got there.

Cornelia lifted Matt's body with telekinesis, and she followed the other girls inside with Matt in tow.

Geez. How long had it been since they fucked up this badly?

"Guardians, welcome back."

Himerish's voice was neither welcoming nor scornful. However, the guardians did arrive to a crowd of elders with scornful faces. The girls gave each other the same panicked looks they'd put on when they knew they failed a test altogether. Heck, they'd even involved Matt!

"I can explain; this was all my fault!" Will admitted, "But please, help Matt—"

"It's good to know you know you were at fault." Himerish produced the glowing Heart from his sleeve. "And it's also good that we have elders tracking where the Heart of Kandrakar is last left."

Will stepped forward to receive it. "I'm sorry. I didn't know this would happen."

But Himerish did not give the Heart to her. "I will return this to you when you finish your business on Arkhanta."

Will took a few steps back and joined the girls. A wordless conversation took place in their eyes - fear, guilt, cowardice. It seemed like nobody was in the mood to argue and rebel. Irma couldn't even think of a joke to lighten things up.

"Tibor," Himerish said, "Please take Matthew Olsen to the Cosmos of Abeyance."

Tibor and two other elders took the Matt away and disappeared into the halls of Kandrakar. That Cosmos of Abeyance sounded scary for Irma; she didn't even know what those words or letters really meant put together!

"Will he be all right?" Will asked.

The Oracle nodded. "He will be."

"O-okay... um, we're gonna... head to Arkhanta now."

"No, you will not."

The girls gasped, astonished. After calling them here, he just—

"You are missing one of your teammates."

Oh. _OH._

Orube. Orube was still in Heatherfield, but, wouldn't that mean the Pussycat too was frozen in time?

"Don't worry, I will call for her now."

Himerish opened a fold, and in a minute, Orube stepped out.

"Sir," she greeted with a bow, and took her place next to the guardians.

Irma stared at the bandages up and down Orube's fists and legs. Geez. She didn't have to crank that all out for the aesthetic.

"Now, you may go."

Himerish opened yet another fold, and wordlessly, the guardians went through.

-o0o-

Arkhanta was the same as ever – the simple people, the warm weather, the hill upon which the Citadel stood…

Will thought that it was so lucky. What was this deal about the land dying, again? Who said that? Arkhanta looked mighty fine! Just hot, but, fine! Everything looked nice! A little dry thanks to the hot weather, but fine nonetheless!

She and her group flew up the hill with Orube following on foot way behind them. They would make quick work of this – they either persuade Ari or not. Will only wanted this to be over, for fuck's sake. The fighting, the situation with her parents, the views of the Elders – Will dreaded snapping in front of her friends and ruining their friendship for good just because of this tremendous stress that decided to bother her. Had it been any time other than now, then maybe things wouldn't… arrive to this.

Cornelia and Taranee, as usual, stuck next to each other.

Hay Lin stayed close to Irma, who was more or less sick of what's happening and would rather go home and flirt with their teacher. (Ugh.)

And then, there's her. Will Vandom. She still had a situation at home; she was stuck between her parents, and she wanted nothing more but to have some sort of break from Kandrakar so she could focus on getting her dad ready for marriage and keeping her mom's wrath at bay.

…right, there was Orube, who mysteriously showed up with more bandages. Great. Whatever she was doing in her free time, Will wasn't there to supervise her, and it's not like the others could be bothered to do so. Not with their little rift.

Needless to say, they all stayed silent. They were going to fail anyway. Her co-guardians weren't as active as they once were on other tasks and missions… or united.

Will missed those days.

In mere minutes, they were in the Scarlet Citadel once more. Mysteriously, there were no guards, and Will lead the team inside.

"Knock, knock, anybody home?" Irma asked in a loud voice, "Come on, Ari, come out and tell us to go home so we can go back to Kandrakar now!"

"T-that's not what we are here to do!" Orube protested, but she earned glares from the guardians.

Huh, that's weird. Even Hay Lin was frowning at her.

Will immediately spoke up. "Thanks, but I don't think we'll appreciate your words right now." It was the politest she could muster up right now, but upon seeing Orube's disheartened face, guilt thrusted into the Keeper's heart. Will did her best to ignore it.

The further the group walked inside the Citadel, the more Will became agitated. Where was everyone? Was Ari in the throne room? Or had he anticipated them somehow? Chills went up Will's spine as she remembered the last time she encountered him – he just opened a view-fold into Kandrakar using the banshee's power!

Just as Will thought of the banshee, the ground rumbled.

"Wow, that was quick!" Irma said, voice dripping with sarcasm. "Cornelia, do something!"

Cornelia huffed as she slid down the shaky floor. "I'm on it already, you buffoon!" She placed her hands on the ground and green energy pooled around her hands. "Earth!"

However, the girls began to sink into the floor.

"What the…?!"

"Hey, I didn't say you could make it worse!" Irma complained as she tried to fly and resist in vain.

"I don't understand!" Cornelia whined, "How could the Earth not respond to me?!"

"I guess you don't control it anymore," Will retorted, but she immediately regretted it.

"So what?! You're gonna rub it in my face, just because you know that we're going to fail no matter what?!"

"Fuck you." Will really, really regretted that.

"Fuck you too, _Wilhelmina_."

Will barely dodged a piece of the wall that Cornelia hurled at her.

"FIRE!" Taranee yelled, but the ground did not melt under her power. "Oh, no!"

"Don't look at me, guys!" Hay Lin informed, "I don't think air can help much here!"

Irma groaned. " _Someone_ think of something!"

"Don't expect me to!" Cornelia growled back. "I can't control the damn thing and I've only made it worse!"

"Ugh! Anyone, anyone at all! If you have any idea on how to stop us from sinking, that'd be great!"

As Will tried to think, half her body sunken into the ground, she found Orube sinking way faster than all of them were. Will shouted and reached a hand to her.

"Give me your hand, Orube!"

"I-I can't!"

The ground finally swallowed Orube's head. Cold chills went up Will's spine.

Oh, shit. Ari was serious about getting rid of them this time, and Will hoped that she would still wake up, if this was just a very bad nightmare.

-o0o-

Meanwhile with the inquisitive Queen of the Meridian, every person in the castle wondered at young Elyon's persistence. How would they not; she spent her time asking everyone personally if they knew something about the late Queen!

"Hey, excuse me, would you happen to know something about Queen Weira, my mother?" she'd ask.

And her servants and guards would answer, "No, I never met her…" or, "All I know is that it was peaceful back in her time!" or, "She was a good queen. I don't think she had enemies of any sort."

Every time, Elyon would feel disappointed. Had there been no one who ever knew her mother, at all?

She turned to Julian.

"I… I was preoccupied with… the Mage," he admitted, cheeks a little flushed, "Who was, ahem, Nerissa. However, I do know that she asked to be granted audience with the Queen, but the Queen always turned her away due to health problems. Consort Zanden was said to be preoccupied with his hobbies, but he attended to his official functions very promptly… except the audience."

While thankful for the information about her father, Elyon wanted information about her mother. She then looked around in the castle and asked Vathek.

"I'm not really sure! Julian and I may be in a similar age group, but I never really saw the late Queen personally, or even knew her personal life. I do know she had advisers, but I think Phobos got rid of them already. From what I know about Phobos, he really just hates associating himself with your mother."

Elyon tried to look for Galgheitta. However, Drake caught the young Queen as she tried to sneak out of the castle.

"HEY!" she yelled, struggling against Drake's hold, "What're you doing?!"

"Your Majesty!" Drake said as he chuckled, "Where are you going? Have you looked into the reports we submitted lately?"

"I…" Elyon flushed in embarrassment. "…admittedly, I was a little… Um. It's not in my priorities right now."

"Well, can I get you to put those among your priorities? Some villages are still struggling in this winter, and they're not sure they'll last until summer."

"I…!"

Of course! While it was important to know about her mother, it was also important to care after her kingdom!

"Your Majesty?"

"I got a little distracted, that's all," Elyon lied, "I was just trying to…"

"Yes, I've heard. You've been trying to learn about your mother all this time." Drake shrugged. "I guess that's all right."

Remembering Caesar and her own naivety, Elyon frowned. "It isn't. I can't be a good queen if I put my personal life before my people."

"I… guess?"

"Thanks for reminding me, though. I should go."

Elyon turned back and headed to her office with a heavy heart, even as her adoptive parents greeted her. As she sat on her desk, she pulled out a doodle of the so-called Queen Weira that Nerissa once presented to her. A woman with a stern face, similar to Phobos'.

Hm. Had Nerissa never seen Queen Weira up and personal? What if the real Queen looked different? Wouldn't there be paintings of her? But then, Vathek said Phobos hated being associated with their mother, which might mean that the paintings would've been burned.

Elyon found it difficult to focus on the reports. She had to do something about this lack of information!

She stood from her desk and called for Alborn and Miriadel.

"Yes, honey?" Miriadel said.

"I want you to lead a team to look around in the castle, for…" Elyon took a deep breath. She couldn't let her emotions take the better of her. "I mean, please try to look around for anything that relates to Queen Weira. Paintings, jewelry, clothes, anything. Please."

Her mother stared at her for a moment with confused eyes, but eventually beamed up. "Of course. We'll try our best, honey."

Elyon smiled back and hugged her mother. "Thanks, Mom!"

As Miriadel followed her husband out the door, Elyon remembered how the last time they had a talk about Queen Weira, things had… escalated, for the lack of a better term.

" _Mom!_ "

Elyon ran and hugged Miriadel from behind.

"Oh, honey. You're so sweet." Miriadel squeezed her hands.

"Um… I'm sorry about yesterday. Will you forgive me for… getting mad at you?"

"Of course, honey, you're forgiven!"

They hugged once more.

In some way, Elyon wondered why she was even looking for her real mother, when this woman who took care of her for practically all her life was, in all ways other than biological, her _real_ mother.

-o0o-

In the heart of the hill overlooking Urdath and many other towns in Arkhanta, Yua stood before the unconscious Kandrakarian warrior and next to a triumphant Ari. The banshee stared at her victim, frowning with regretful eyes.

"Do it, Yua," Ari commanded.

"I-if it… if my magic… kills her…" Yua whimpered.

Ari tugged on her bindings and reached for her neck. "Then she received it as a warning from us to Kandrakar. Yua, if you want Maqi to remain safe, if you want Arkhanta to remain safe, do it to this warrior. One casualty is forgivable. Kandrakar abandoned me and my son – there are two of us, and only one of these girls you'll have to use your magic on." He let go of the banshee. "Now, do it. It's for the greater good."

The banshee, though coughing and hacking, nodded. She loomed over the young warrior.

_My dear, where are you? Please. I don't want to kill._

Just as the thought of her accomplice entered the banshee's head, the warrior gained consciousness and sent Yua flying across the cave. Ari gasped.

" _YUA!_ "

"It's over for you, fiends!" the warrior roared, and Yua feared.

Yua feared having Ari killed by a hand of Kandrakar. Only Ari had the power to defend Maqi from anything.

Yua feared having Maqi taken away by Kandrakar. Or worse, he could be killed!

Yua feared not her death, but for Maqi.

She wailed and sent a beam of energy towards the arrogant warrior. " _Leave him alone!_ "

The warrior struggled to stand, and Yua immediately helped Ari phase up to the throne room. There. She fixed it. If the warrior dies from the spell, it'd be the warrior's fault and only the warrior's.

Yua swallowed. "L-little girl… please… don't fight back…"

The warrior took her stance and growled. "Prepare yourself, monster!" She lunged in, but Yua lifted herself into the air.

"…be… my guest…"

Yua's forehead geodes glowed, and she shot a beam of black energy at the warrior. The warrior screamed and writhed in the air, trying to resist the nether magic.

Resisting nether magic had more consequences than resisting aether magic. Yua once again said, "Please… don't fight… I don't want… to kill you. Please, forget. Forget who you are. Come… to me."

The warrior eventually stopped resisting, and Yua felt her mind connect into the poor girl's.

_AAAAARRRGH!_

Yua dropped to the ground as the warrior dropped into the pond. The weight of this girl's pain! The weight of her burden! What sorrow filled this girl's mind… an ambition never realized… a society that looked down upon her dream…

Yua screeched. She wanted no more of this! This pain was too excruciating for her to bear! But if she let go of the spell, then she would lose the chance to get rid of Kandrakar, once and for all!

She struggled to reach the pond and teleported the warrior into the empty halls of the citadel. Yua then looked into the murky water of her artificial swamp and tried to locate her accomplice. Fortunately for her, the accomplice had arrived and was now looking to save the other girls.

_Please. Hurry!_

-o0o-

Meanwhile, the guardians woke up in a prison with no doors. It was just pure wall, floor, and ceiling, and, of course, the group.

Could they still be called a group if they could not even agree with each other? At the least, Will was thankful she woke up – but she was still in a nightmare.

"Ugh, I feel like I've been spun inside a blender!" Irma complained. "Where are we, even?"

"How do we get out of here?" Hay Lin wondered, examining the walls.

Will did a mental headcount. Huh. That's strange. "Where's Orube?"

"We have three questions, and no answers!" Taranee announced, then turned to Cornelia, who also examined the walls. "Any luck, Cornelia?"

"I don't know!" Cornelia answered, "The walls feel very strange!"

"In that case, we can just use transposition, I guess?"

…right! They still had the power to teleport themselves within a world!

"Back to the citadel, girls!" Will commanded and closed her eyes.

Energy enveloped them, and in a flash, they were standing before the seemingly empty Scarlet Citadel once more.

The emptiness irked Will so much. "There's something wrong here," she said, "I just can't put my finger to it."

They entered, but they came upon a different hallway. Fountains cascaded down the walls, while the floor had beautiful engravings.

"This is a trap," Taranee whispered to Will. "We can't go here."

"I don't want to go back, either!" Will whispered back, but when they looked behind them, the door had disappeared, the hallway was cut off, and their only way out was marked by the engravings. "…oh shit. This is worse than I thought."

"I don't want to go there!" Cornelia whined.

"We have no other choice!"

Though reluctant, they followed the engravings and the fountains, but the more they walked through the halls, the more it became clear that the pathway would be never-ending.

"We should've never left that room!" Irma said and pulled Hay Lin away from the rest. "I say we stay here and figure out where the hell we are, first!"

"No, we're not!" Cornelia marched towards Irma. "I'm sick of this world, and I'm sick of that man who calls himself King! I'm so, so sick of this place and I wouldn't think about this place if I could!"

"Yeah, and we keep going around in circles, Blondie!"

"Listen here, you dumb brunette, the sooner we leave this place, the better!"

Taranee pushed them away from each other. "Okay, cut it out! I understand how Cornelia feels, but I think Irma's right. We need to calm down and figure this out, okay? I didn't even want to meet Kandrakar in the first place!"

Kandrakar! The Heart! Will suggested, "I could use the Heart—" but she remembered she left the Heart with Himerish, or rather, Himerish confiscated the Heart from her. "…transposition?"

"I don't want to risk it," Hay Lin confessed, "I can't even think of where to go!"

"Not even outside the citadel?"

"No. I really want to go home… I can't take this anymore!"

Hay Lin ran back to where they came from. Irma shouted her name and followed her friend. Meanwhile, Cornelia pulled a hesitant Taranee towards the other direction.

"Guys! We can't split up! It's too dangerous!" Will yelled. Who would she try to follow first?

She tried to use transposition and go after Hay Lin and Irma. But, when Will opened her eyes, she was in front of a fork connected to a similar hallway filled with flowing water and engravings.

"This is a trap. This is a trap!"

Will closed her eyes and called for Taranee mentally, but she couldn't connect. Distraught, Will ran towards one of the forked pathways.

"Guys! Where are you?!" she called, "Irma! Hay Lin! Cornelia! Taranee! Somebody, please, answer!"

The halls seemed never-ending!

"…somebody… please…!"

Will fell to her knees. She didn't sign up for this. She wanted nothing more but to go home and rest. Kandrakar could impose anything on them if they wanted to, but she was tired of doing its bidding. She was tired of being caught up in problems she didn't start. She wanted some sort of peace.

" _Please…_ " she pleaded.

Just then, one of the fountains gave way and a hallway revealed itself. The despaired guardian stared at it, curious and eager to see if it would lead outside.

' _It's alright,'_ a voice said. It was a voice belonging to a person she knew nothing about, but Will was more than thankful to know that there was someone else out there, trying to look after her welfare.

Slowly, she forced her shaky legs to stand, and she wiped her tears. "Can I… really…?"

' _Don't hesitate. Just follow this path. And don't look back.'_

Having the voice around soothed Will. Whoever this stranger was, they were a kind soul.

The new pathway was easier to follow, and the more she followed it, the brighter her surroundings became.

Light! She was going towards the light!

Eventually, she heard footsteps following her. Will turned around, and for the first time in a few days, she was so happy to see her teammates with her.

"Guys!" she greeted them.

"I don't know who this person is," Irma said, "But I think I can trust them!"

Excited, the girls ran towards the exit, towards the bright light at the end—

And found themselves waking up in the room they started with. The room without walls – except now, there was a door carved on one side. Will ran out and observed she was on a cliff overlooking the many towns in Arkhanta. This must be a place on the hill…

"How are you?"

Will flinched, but it was only the voice from earlier. She turned around to thank the stranger, but she found a red-haired girl wearing a faded cloak, a reed(?) hat, and an exasperated face, staring at her.

"I-I'm fine," Will answered, unsure to why the other girl looked at her like that. "Are we really… out of that place? That… maze?"

The other girls came out just as the stranger answered, "Yes. You're good. You better retrieve your sixth companion and take her back."

Will and her teammates gasped.

"Orube?!" Will took the stranger by the shoulders. "You saw Orube?!"

"…I didn't see your friend. I _felt_ her." The other girl shoved Will's hands away. "She's in the citadel's entrance hall. Now, take her and go back to where you came from. Lest you want yourselves killed. Please."

"Hey, Girlie!" Irma called. "Who are you?!"

"And why don't you try helping us tell Ari to stop his madness and release the banshee?!" added Cornelia.

The stranger began to walk away. Cornelia raised thorns around the other girl in an attempt to stop her.

"Please," Will said, "Answer us. It would help if you—"

"That girl," interrupted the stranger in a lecturing voice, "Is dying by the second. Lest you want yet another casualty to your failure of a task, take, her, back. _Now._ "

The guardians shifted, but Cornelia did not release the thorns. "…it would be easier if you just answered us. You look like you know so much about this whole ordeal. Who is Ari? Who is the banshee? Why are they making things difficult for Kandrakar?"

The strange girl turned around. "True, I can answer those. But your companion will die. So, what will it be?"

Will bit the insides of her cheeks. Know the truth about Arkhanta and have Orube killed in the time they'd talk… or take Orube back and leave Arkhanta for later.

And Will was going to be blamed for either consequence, no matter which one she chose.

She turned to Cornelia. "…please let her go."

"But why?!" Cornelia yelled, "Why should I let her go?! She might be the answer to all of our questions about Ari!"

"Didn't you hear what she said?! Orube is dying by the second! By, the, second! We need to go back to Kandrakar and assess this!"

"Will, I don't really care about her, and we don't even know if this girl right here is telling the truth!"

" _HEY!_ "

Hay Lin's voice alerted Cornelia, and the Earth Guardian shrieked when she saw that her thorns wilted. The stranger ran away!

"I should—"

"No, Hay Lin!" Will held Hay Lin back. "We should go back to the citadel now!"

"You let her get away!" Cornelia accused, but Taranee held her back.

Yeah. This was a mess. Their last chance had been a mess! But it would be a bigger mess if someone fucking _died_ because they neglected her!

Cornelia was still giving very heated glares at her when Will walked into the citadel once more and found Orube unconscious. Will tried to ignore the pressure of the glare as she gave soft slaps to Orube in an attempt to wake her up.

"Orube, Orube! Can you hear me?! Orube!" Will called, "Answer me, please!"

Orube's eyes fluttered open, and Will sighed in relief.

"The banshee…" muttered the warrior. "I saw her… she…" Orube's eyes widened and she forced herself to sit up. "Aaahh! She did something to me!"

Will helped her up.

"What's wrong with her?" Irma asked.

"Let's do what the girl said and just go back to Kandrakar," Will suggested.

"No!" Orube wailed, "You can't do that! Please just stop the banshee! And, and Ari, he…! He was…!" She reached for Will's hands. "I can't go back! The banshee did something to me and then I…!"

Then the warrior's eyes rolled back, and her body fell against Will's arms.

Maybe the stranger had been right. They needed to go back to Kandrakar, and fast!

Just in time, a fold opened in front of the guardians. Wordlessly (and very awkwardly), they walked in. Will hoped that they could shove away all this talk about worthiness and Ari's arrogance, because Orube felt really cold in her arms…

-o0o-

The more Caleb tried to proceed with the interrogation, the more he got irritated. Meridian's winter did not do anything to cool his head.

Vaal only replied to questions answerable by yes or no. Caleb was a smart man, though. He tried to phrase his questions so that they should be answerable by yes or no…

Except that it was getting tiring.

Rephrasing things meant that he had to cite specific examples. The challenge joggled his mind and turned it into meatball soup that contained mysterious ingredients of shady origins. He felt the urge to throw Vaal down a pit while singing magical folk songs in the most stoic way possible, for being this difficult.

At the very least, Caleb was able to extract the following information:

Vaal witnessed Phobos grow up as a boy, since infanthood. Phobos was, undoubtedly, very selfish, but also, he had deeper motives to his many actions, one of which was… doing it for the attention. Phobos did embezzle funds to furbish a few towns to his liking, and there were towns he didn't tamper with to appease his wealthy supporters. However, the townspeople in there worked for said wealthy supporters, who were, predictably, cruel to the lower class. Taxes, tributes, harems, the people offered everything they could to save themselves, so when Phobos was dethroned and his wealthy supporters scattered about, the towns were more than happy to be rid of them.

Townspeople raided mansions and it had been chaotic. Civilians were caught in the ruckus as they fought over the possessions that once rightfully belonged to them. Incidents went unreported as they were, after all, only settling a dispute started so long ago by Phobos' supporters.

In other words, they wanted to cherish their freedom and didn't want tampering from the castle and its officials.

This was all nice to know, but this wouldn't help in the bandits case at all. Or would it?

Maybe, maybe they weren't looking at an organized group of bandits, but rather, unsatisfied townspeople fighting against each other for resources? Caleb needed to read the documents again.

"…so would you say that the current bandit raids are, well, the townspeople rebelling on themselves?"

Vaal shrugged. "Yes and no?"

"Or, are there people organizing a few movements?"

Vaal shrugged.

Temptation and frustration took over Caleb, and he reached for the list of questions in his pocket.

One of the questions focused on the late Queen Weira. A change of topics might help him get his groove back. Plus, he had to make this interrogation fruitful.

"Alright. About the late Queen. Weira."

Vaal flinched. "Y-yes? About her?"

"…did you know… did you personally know her?"

"I… yes. In a way. Yes."

That's… not entirely peculiar, Caleb supposed. Vaal had to be an official in the castle for a long time, but why would he know Weira personally?

"Does that mean you served her?"

"Yes."

"For how… for many years?"

Vaal shrugged, eyes going wide. For a bit?

"Five? Ten? Twenty?"

Vaal nodded. Around that number, then? But if memory served him right, Caleb knew that Weira's rule only lasted so long. No, wait. He had to be specific.

"Around ten or twenty years serving her. Just her. Not taking the time in which you spent your days with Phobos, wherein he was a young boy."

"No."

"Ten years, then?"

"…yes. Regrettably."

How odd. Why would Vaal regret serving such a great, benevolent, and kind Queen? Vaal was old; most old men reflect on their experiences serving the Queen and find pride in fighting for her glory and her legacy in Elyon.

"…can you tell me more about her?"

Vaal nodded. "Yes. Of course. I can."

Now that was a game-changer.

Just then, knocking came from the door. One of the guards standing next to Vaal opened it and revealed Alborn.

"Hello, Caleb!" he greeted. "We just received a special order from Her Majesty. Can I borrow some of your men?"

Caleb stood from his seat and smiled. "Yes, sure. But what was it about?"

"She wants us to find anything connected to the late Queen Weira!"

"About that!" Excitement filled Caleb's heart. Things were looking up, and the interrogation had indeed been fruitful! "Please tell Her Majesty that the fugitive Vaal might have some answers to her some of her questions, but schedule their meeting for tomorrow."

But he'd allow for Elyon and Vaal to meet after this interrogation. Besides, he still had to milk out whatever else Vaal could say, and also guide Elyon on how to ask Vaal.

Things were really getting better. Maybe sooner, Caleb would finally be allowed to cross to Heatherfield again and spend some time with Cornelia. Sooner.

-o0o-

When they crossed over to Kandrakar, Luba shoved the guardians away from her student. She took Orube into her arms and led the girls, the Oracle, and a few other elders into a room filled with incense. Will would've asked about Matt, but Tibor wasn't around, and she didn't want to get lost in Kandrakar.

Will covered her nose at the intense smell of the room. At least this was telling her she wasn't dreaming. She tried to direct her senses to mostly sight only – the engravings on the white walls, the mark of history and architecture, the golden incense holders with smoke rising from the incense…

"Can anything be done, Oracle?" Luba asked. Now that Will looked at the elders, the other ones whose names she'd missed were in deep concentration, perhaps assisting with some sort of healing process.

"…this is peculiar," Himerish said, "It's as though Orube isn't even here! She's… strange!"

Irma leaned next to Will and whispered. "She was never that normal in the first place either—"

Will jabbed her friend in the elbow.

" _OUCH!_ "

"Something wrong, guardians?" One of the elders in concentration opened their eye to look at the girls.

Will waved them off. "Don't worry about it! Please do as… you need to."

The events went through Will's head as she waited for the elders to do their healing.

So the guardians went and arrived in an almost empty citadel. Almost was the keyword – this had surely been a trap laid out for them. They went in, and in confusion, they stepped right into the trap, got sucked into a room, and was separated from Orube… or, Orube was separated from them. Will reckoned that the older girl would've known what to do as a warrior trained by Basiliade and granted such honors by Kandrakar personally to serve them… but she said she met Yua. While Orube dealt with Yua, Will and the others woke up to another trap that had been totally freaky.

That one was something meant to drive them insane and hopeless.

Will found it weird. Through the power of the banshee, Ari confused them, separated Orube from them, and played with their minds. Had this been any other mission, this would've been easy to solve – no, it still wouldn't, not with their lack of unity and harmony.

…Ari found their weakness and struck right there.

_How?!_

"O-Oracle… she's stirring!"

Luba's shrieking snapped Will away from her thoughts, and the Keeper's eyes widened when Orube jumped to her feet and struck at the Oracle with a beam of energy.

"What are you doing?!"

Now it was all of them shrieking and yelling and panicking!

In a moment of confusion, Orube knocked the other elders down, and Luba only succeeded in shoving the guardians out into the hallway, before a portion of the room fell to Orube's might.

"She's strong!" Irma yelled, before getting pulled by Luba away from Orube's kick.

"And fast!" added the elder.

"Orube, you bitch, are you crazy?!" Cornelia manipulated Earth into her hands and built a wall using Kandrakar's marbled flooring. "You just attacked the elders of Kandrakar! You just attacked the Oracle!"

With a fist, Orube tore the wall down so easily. The girls only backed away – Will could tell they were all shivering before Orube's might. Luba asserted a pose in front of the guardians. The warrior raised her hands and—

"…no… not them…" she said, fists pooling with raw energy, and sprinted down the other way.

"The Oracle!" The terrified Luba followed her student, prompting the guardians to follow too.

But, when they did arrive back in the incensed room, Luba had fallen right next to the Oracle. Irma summoned her element and blasted it at Orube.

"Stay back, Pussycat!"

Now that Will could look at Orube properly, the warrior's eyes were sheet white. It reminded Will of the Horn of Hypnos and how people would stare on blankly and simply be… not themselves!

Stunned at the realization, Will didn't notice how her teammates all fell before Orube, until the warrior took her by the neck.

"S-stop…" Will croaked, taking hold of Orube's wrists. "Stop, please… It's just us… W-we mean no harm!"

But Orube answered in a voice that wasn't entirely hers. "If you want to save yourselves, you won't stand between me and the Oracle." It sounded like three different people were speaking – Orube, a man, and another woman.

Orube. Ari. And Yua.

Will allowed her limbs to fall in pretense of giving up, and Orube let go of her. Around them, the other guardians struggled to get up. In front of them, Luba still lay unconscious. Orube stood before the Oracle and drew her sword.

"Alone at last, Oracle," she declared, and raised her blade.

Then Will raised her voice. " _Guardians! Attack her!_ "

"Water!" "Fire!" "Earth!" "Air!"

"Quintessence!"

With a shriek, Will summoned what willpower was left in her to direct her quintessence against Orube. Her teammates followed suit in the same shock and worry she felt – and she felt it. She felt that thrum of energy connecting them and urging them to save the stupid, secretive Oracle from their obviously hypnotized teammate.

And as Orube received their attacks, she screamed and writhed about, body seemingly rejecting something—

Then a silhouette of the banshee removed itself from the warrior. The silhouette made screaming motions as it dissipated into the air. Orube fell limp onto the floor, right next to the rubble she – her body – created.

She was so terrifying, hypnotized or not. Her power was so terrifying, and Will was thankful Orube hadn't done anything to them at all. Heck, maybe she even took care not to show this power just yet! All this superhuman strength, packed into that lithe, toned body…

As the other elders came to investigate the fuss, Will curled up on the floor. She wanted to go back to Heatherfield, lock herself in her room, and never wake up anymore.

-o0o-

"What happened, Ilse?"

The young girl frowned at Lodi when he spoke those ill words. She just came back from the hill; were these appropriate words for a greeting? He knew this issue was more personal than—

Nevertheless, she decided to be a little more professional. She calmly took her reed hat and set it upon her head.

"Well," she said, "We were a little too late. Just a little. But we managed to save them albeit with a few... complications. Don't worry. They're more or less safe."

Lodi mirrored her frown. "I'm sorry. I should've went with you—"

"And risk losing one day's worth of profit and try stretching the budget again." Ilse stared into the distance, remembering exactly how _well_ that went. Everyone could only do so little thanks to their bodies exhausting themselves, starved of the food they should've received from the profit that did not come. It was only a miracle - and perhaps, their nature - that saved them.

She added, "This is a time when none of us can afford to be too sick or too preoccupied. When we're down by one member, the others have to share the burden of making up for the loss of one day's worth of work."

Lodi turned away, ashamed.

"But, thank you." Ilse gave his mare a few strokes along its withers. "Without her, I might've not really gotten here in time." She released a heavy sigh. "It's just that, without you... we're going to lose all source of profit. And without profit..."

"You can't trade with Teong for the sea meat he always gets us," Lodi finished for her, smiling.

Ilse smiled back and playfully tugged on Lodi's own hat. "I can't keep my debt with him, you know. The guy works way too hard."

She and Lodi shared a few laughs and they started to make their way back.

"Say, Ilse. You and Elder Dai always say that the land is dying. If so, why are we still worrying about these little things?"

Ilse's eyes widened at the innocent question. Indeed. Why worry about such mundane things when the world's end was just on the horizon?

As she opened her mouth to speak, dark clouds started forming in the middle of a bright, sunny day. In such a weather, going forth and crossing rivers would be perilous.

"Let's find shelter first," Ilse said, and she led Lodi and the mare towards a deep part of the nearby forest.

Like many other Arkhantans, the Urdians were terrified of the darkness that the trees provided. These people believed that convoluted roots concealed the greedy, selfish fae who guarded over their homes and treasures, and would prank a poor human soul who dared cross into their territory.

Lodi was like those many other Urdians. He spoke the words of invitation - _I'm sorry, dear mighty fae; please let me by, I pray_ \- as they crossed through the forest and sought shelter in an old tree with roots as tall as a grown man. Its branches were so stout that when the rain fell, he and Ilse and the mare were protected from the droplets. Once again, Lodi made a prayer - _I thank you, dear fae; I will not forget your kindness on the way_.

Ilse was the other kind of person. Coming here calmed her, similarly to the comfort she'd feel when she was back home.

"Aren't you going to make a prayer, Ilse?" Lodi asked.

"Oh, give up." Ilse touched the large root next to her - this one was thousands of years old. "You've been asking me that for the past three years, starting when you moved in with my uncle." Old habits die hard; that's all!

Lodi tried to look angry, but he was stifling his laughter. "I'm just making sure! It won't hurt to make sure." He knew, but it still irked him.

"Yeah. Most of the time." Ilse leaned against a gigantic root, and Lodi, though a little reluctant, copied her.

The minutes flew by, and the humidity allowed for a bit of mist to form. Ilse smiled as she saw the hazy figures in the distance. She always loved seeing those beautiful forms.

"Lodi. Look at that."

The sleepy man lazily opened his eye. "What?"

"The fae... they're here, Lodi."

"...Ilse, could you not joke like that?"

"It's them."

Ilse closed her eyes and listened. Rain pitter pattering. Dew drops glistening and sliding down. Frogs croaking. A small stream going down and babbling.

"Lodi," she called in an almost-whisper, "Do you want to know why we still care about such little matters, even when faced with this world's destruction?"

Her companion did not answer. He had snoozed away, lulled to sleep by the weather and the fae's magic.

"It's because..." Ilse let the sunny memories of a certain someone pass through her mind, and a grin made way to her lips. "I don't want to die being this miserable... the way _she_ did."

Somewhere else in Arkhanta, perhaps right around Urdath or maybe Dugnit, there would be a heavy downpour. A heavy downpour that would take away houses and harvest. A heavy downpour that might take lives with it.

But not in this forest, not when the fae were protecting it. In delight, Ilse watched them dance around and pass by...

Until she laid her eyes upon a peculiar ripple in the water. By instinct, Ilse knew what it was, and knowing what it was soured her mood. She forced herself up from her resting place and went over to the water puddle. Focusing energy onto her hand, she controlled the visage and received the fold-call.

"Hello," she greeted, all delight and restfulness gone.

"Did... they make... it?" asked the person on the other side.

Ilse nodded. "I'd like to think so."

"...thank—"

"Why don't you want to leave that place?"

The other person flinched.

"You should just take him and leave. We'll take care of you here." Even if their resources were already stretched. "You can't keep living like this. You already... you already know the consequences of your stay, and now we all suffer from that!"

The other person did not reply. It only fueled Ilse's frustration.

"You can talk, can't you?! Just tell me! Tell me what I and everyone else have to do for you to leave!"

After an eternity, the other person only said, "...nothing. I... I cannot. I will not... leave... at all. I think... I—!"

"Shut up."

Ilse dismissed the fold-call and curled up against a huge root. Why did that person not want to leave when it was clear it was bad for her?!

Ilse took a deep breath. No. She would not die miserable. She was better than this. Things like this fold-call annoyed her to no end, but she would not die miserable. She wouldn't die with regrets.

Or rather, she shouldn't.

She hoped.

-o0o-

When the guardians went home to Heatherfield and back in the middle of lunchtime, everything just... fucking sucked.

Santabor or whatever was his name brought Matt back and he was mostly fine. However, Will was just quietly sobbing and agonizing. It was most likely because her boyfriend had overexerted himself and it was mostly her fault; also likely because of... the aftermath of Mission: Ari is a Big Ass and Yua is a Big Bitch. And now here the Guardian Leader was, distancing herself from her boyfriend, telling him to go to band practice later and to not look for her anymore, then running away to sob somewhere in the school.

Taranee didn't feel like talking to them and so did Cornelia. The two just left so wordlessly, no wonder preoccupied with their own thing.

And Hay Lin... Hay Lin was of no help at all, despite being that so-called best friend from kindergarten. What use was being given some sort of lame responsibility like "Keeper of the Breath of Time"? She could barely speak!

Irma stomped away and ran into Sylla again.

"Hey, you guys finished with lunch?" he asked.

Irma wrapped her arms around him and cried.

"We're finished!" she announced in tears, caring little about how she would look like to any passerby, even if they were the Grumpers. "Everything's just... falling apart and I hate it!"

Sylla gave her a few pats on the back and gently pushed her away. He offered a handkerchief to her.

"I'm sure the school counselor can help you. But, are you all right? Earlier, you looked so pale."

"I don't know!"

"I can take you to the counselor. Or the nurse. Maybe the nurse first? Irma?"

Irma nodded as she wiped tears and snot again and again.

Being magical was. Not. Fun. Magic could never heal this sort of wounds, and going to the nurse wouldn't soothe the pain at all. But, it wasn't like she had any other choice, and she was too tired to argue.

-o0o-

Hay Lin sat in class of about 20 students, and how she never felt more alone! She tried talking to Taranee but Taranee politely declined any sort of discussion! Then Irma disappeared.

Why was everything falling apart? It was more than important to stay united right now, more than ever! What about Will? She was understandably upset, but Hay Lin needed support from her, the leader! Why was Will turning her back now, too, when Yan Lin and Meera Lin were no longer trustworthy?

If they could only work together again. They could still make it. They could still fix everything, right? This was just one incident. Just one. They had about a year to mend things, but maybe if they showed how cooperative they could be, Kandrakar would let them do their thing again.

Then they could go on adventures and be friends and not be so… miserable like this.

When Hay Lin finally cornered Taranee against the lockers—

"I'm busy," Taranee defended with a huge frown and slammed her locker door closed, "And can we not talk about us or any... of those things? I'm tired of being special the guardian way. And there's somewhere I need to go to later. It's important."

"Please, Taranee." Hay Lin whined. "I don't know what happened to us. Why can't we make amends with Cornelia? Is it because Caleb couldn't be in the team? Is it because Orube is in the team?"

But the more Hay Lin asked, the further Taranee got irritated. Fire burned in Taranee's eyes when she glared at Hay Lin.

"You got the Breath of Time. That's your responsibility, right? You should choose to keep your eyes on it. Actually, you could've chosen to reject it, instead of acting like your incurable optimism can solve all your problems!"

Hay Lin gasped. How could Taranee say these things?! She spat back, "Why don't you try to sit back and lie to yourself in the face of a problem?! I've been trying so hard all this time despite being so late to the news, and all I've ever seen you do is complain!"

"And I mediated between Will and Cornelia while you were so busy entertaining a grown woman like Orube!"

"That's because she's a newbie and none of you were talking to her!"

"So why did you talk to her while our own group was falling apart?!"

They amassed a crowd around them. The two girls hurled hateful words at each other, words that Hay Lin never expected herself or her (ex?) friend to say. The other students cheered them on, until someone caught sight of Hay Lin's bag emitting smoke.

"Is something burning?"

"Hay Lin! Your bag is on fire!"

One thing led to another, and after the sprinklers activated, Hay Lin and Taranee landed in the principal's office all wet and upset.

It was really good of Kandrakar to put them on probation for now. Hay Lin hated groupwork if that meant having to work with a witch like Taranee.

_'You set my bag on fire.'_

_'You started it. Now I'm late to my audition.'_

' _You deserve it.'_

' _Go to hell.'_

-o0o-

"Sir, our graphs did detect some anomalies today."

Sylla grinned as he slinked into a new shirt after another round of basketball with the local kids. "Alright. Lay it on me."

"Around Sheffield's lunchtime, there was a spike of energy. A huge scale going off the charts for one second... then everything just dropped."

"Anything else?"

"Uh. There were minimal amounts around the morning, a little higher than usual but still along the minimal levels, then it built up towards lunch. And, there was one around the afternoon. We think this would've happened in between classes. It's just a... small amount. I don't think this is useful."

"Oh no. It's useful. Thank you, Flick."

Sylla pressed the button and placed his phone down. He rubbed his wet hair with his towel as his laptop loaded a few important documents.

"Let's see... Irma Lair." She ran into him two times and she looked so different each time. The first, she was pale with cracked lips, like she dried up. The second, she was looking like a normal teenager. The two meetings must've happened in a span of 20 minutes at the most.

Bodies were not supposed to magically recover in 20 minutes. Further proof was the spike in magical activity around that time, and it was, indeed, lunchtime.

"Taranee Cook, and Hay Lin Lin", getting into a huge fight in between classes, and Ms. Lin's bag abnormally catches fire that the smoke detector activates the sprinklers.

And right now, it seemed like some rift had formed among the five girls. Will Vandom looked depressed all the time; Cornelia Hale was just selfish, plain and simple.

It would be easy to tear them apart now. The rats were distracted, and he felt good about the latest developments. He'd take care of Brooke's special request to see things for his own eyes later. Ms. Lair might be easily coaxed to show things for him.

Sylla leaned back on his couch and took a swig of canned beer. He prepared himself for this. Somewhere near the future, he'd have to ruin a teenager's life. (Or five of them.)

...so what? Once he was done with this, he wouldn't have to interact with the girls or their families anymore. There were just five of them – just five among the millions and millions of people in the world. Besides, he had much more mysteries to solve, and if he didn't work on mysteries, his name wouldn't be Raphael Sylla.

-o0o-

Orube dropped to the floor the moment Luba escorted her back to Heatherfield.

What were these memories that she did not remember making?! She fell before the banshee, and the banshee… the banshee used this spell, and when Orube woke up she was back in the citadel with a heavy weight in her body, seemingly trying to push this "her" out of it.

How horrifying! How horrifying!

Orube almost tore her sword away from her body. A knife… she needed a knife… This body was still hers, right? It was still hers, and she wanted to feel; she had to feel. Numbness, numbness and alienation overwhelmed her. No. Feeling wouldn't make it. But she wanted to feel. No noise? No noise. No noise, please. Soft. She needed something soft to bite on.

Orube crawled to grab a pillow from the furniture set and bit on it. Better. Much better. Now feeling. Feeling? Would a blade across her skin make it? Would a blade make it hurt enough, much, much enough? She dug her nails into her skin and drew blood. Yes. She needed something stronger. A blade. She needed a blade.

_She let herself be controlled; she was weak, she was so fucking weak—_

Orube squirmed towards her sword. That was the nearest blade available. She regretted throwing it away. Pain, pain, pain. She needed, wanted, desired, couldn't live without pain. Slice skin open. Bleed out the weakness. Look at how pretty the red seeped into the white of the bandage.

_She just attacked the Oracle—_

Orube sloppily drew her sword, and in the process, she cut her hand. It stung, but she deserved it. She happily deserved it. Some people would never understand the necessity of this progress, and Luba…

_She attacked Luba—_

Luba might have the best intentions, but there were no better options or methods. _I'm sorry._ Orube pressed her other arm against her blade. If she couldn't use this against the enemy, she could use it on herself. This was so she could be stronger, stronger… if she could still be strong. If she could really bleed out that imperfection residing in her.

_She almost killed every single one and she tore down a sacred hall meant for healing her and she drew blood—_

She was weak, so so weak, so so fucking weak and she wasn't of use to the guardians, she was trash she was useless she was absolute garbage and she should've never been fucking born and she should've never had a dream and she should've, she should've, she should've…

She would've made Father proud. She would've made Luba proud. But now, all that's left in Orube was shame, shame, shame, and nothing but weakness.

Now, her dreams would never be real. Failure meant that she would go back to Basiliade and start over. All that training, all those efforts, and all those nights in which she already let her weakness flow out of her body…

Orube wept. Why was the road to being an ambassadress still so, so far away from her grasp?

-o0o-

Yua stared into the water in dismay. She made multiple attempts to contact her acquaintance again, to no avail. The other end was not being received.

"Did you dispose of the guardians?"

Yua stirred from her pond and found Ari down her chamber. Good. He did not find her talking to her accomplice. Her estimation was still accurate. "…yes…"

"Are you sure they will not be back?"

"…yes… my Lord…"

"Good."

And now, they could all return to their normal lives once again. Yua smiled to herself as she watched her Lord leave.

The fragment of her soul which she placed in the warrior came back to her a few hours ago. She replayed its memories once more on the water. A room filled with smoky incense. Worried elders and little girls.

Even if the warrior did not succeed in taking the Oracle's life, the damage she dealt to Kandrakar should be sufficient. Ari hated repeating himself, after all, and insistence provoked his wrath.

Yua grinned. People were rather easy to read, and the guardians were in no shape to threaten Arkhanta.

She felt about for Ari's presence in Maqi's room before materializing a part of herself next to the boy. He slept soundly, clutching a favored toy in his hands, one of those that escaped Ari's wrath not too long ago. Yua's phantom caressed Maqi's hair and kissed his head.

' _For you, my sweet… for you.'_

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From this point on, a lot of the content will not have basis in canon. Also, the first "arc" of this story is finally done. Hooray!

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked this story, don't forget to drop a comment/review!
> 
> Updates will come in when I have enough pre-written chapters, so I don't have to do a major overhaul when I change plots all of a sudden. :'^)


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